Genre Challenge Willowsnake Version
by Willowsnake
Summary: Puppyshipping drabbles based on the different genres chosen by Reizbar-Ookami.
1. Fantasy

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

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><p>Author's Note – This is a genre challenge fic consisting of a total of six drabbles. Reizbar-Ookami and I are challenging each other by giving one another a genre to base a story off of.<p>

The first genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…FANTASY!

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><p><strong>Fantasy (Rated T)<strong>

"I don't want it!" Joey exclaimed when Bakura thrust the Millennium Rod into his hands. "Why the hell did ya steal it from Marik?"

"I didn't steal it," replied the not-so-former-thief. "I borrowed it."

"…"

"I did!"

"I just don't understand why ya gotta give it to _me_!"

Bakura sighed exasperatedly. "One, you live with Kaiba and Marik has been terrified of him ever since he ripped out Marik's hair for jabbing him in the back with the rod. Two, you're the least likely to actually _use_ the rod, so I don't have to worry about you sending anyone to the Shadow Realm. And three, you're too dumb to figure out how to use it anyway."

"I ain't dumb!"

"…you said two plus two equals five."

"I was talkin' about the book we were readin' for school! _1984_!" Joey explained.

"Well, school isn't really your strong point," replied Bakura, still not looking convinced. "Just look after the rod until I come back for it."

The blond grumbled under his breath. "Fine. But if ya ain't back here by tonight, I'm throwin' it out the window," he said before slamming the front door of Kaiba Mansion in the thief's face.

Clenching the rod in his hands, Joey trudged up the stairs. Mokuba was away at a friend's, probably Yugi's, and Seto was at work; the both of them wouldn't be back until later that afternoon. And he couldn't go to the Game Shop to hang out with his friends because he had to babysit the stupid rod.

Which meant he had to stay here…all alone…until Bakura came back.

Sighing, Joey continued up the stairs and wandered aimlessly down the hallway as he wondered what he could do to pass the time.

On a whim, he entered the library. Seto had practically forbidden him from entering it. Okay, well, he had forbidden him from entering it. But it wasn't his fault that a spider landed on his arm. He hated spiders. So he couldn't really be blamed for swinging his arms like a madman, thus knocking over one of the bookshelves and nearly destroying the library.

The rage radiating off of his boyfriend at that moment had sent him running. And it had taken months for the brunet to put the library back together. After that, the blond had been banned from entering. But Seto wasn't here right now, so it couldn't hurt to look around the library for a bit.

Twirling the rod in his hands, Joey browsed the massive bookshelves, testing a book every now and then to see if a secret passage would appear. But alas, no moving bookshelves.

Immediately growing bored—and disappointed—the blond decided that playing with the Millennium Rod while no one was around would be more fun than doing nothing at all.

So he began spinning it. And when that failed to entertain him, he decided to pretend it was a sword, so he slashed the air, fighting invisible fiends. Then he decided to do a Marik imitation, brandishing the rod like he did.

Suddenly, the Millennium Rod began to vibrate. But instead of throwing it across the room like a normal person when some ancient object started moving of its own accord, he held it up to examine it. And when he did so, a beam of light shot out of the rod and hit the nearest bookshelf.

Joey dropped the rod then. However, that wasn't the only thing that fell. A book from the bookshelf plummeted to the floor and it was glowing. The blond knew from experience that if an inanimate object started glowing, chances were the outcome wouldn't be good.

"Shit," Joey muttered under his breath, fully expecting the book to come to life and eat him or something. But nothing happened. In fact, the book stopped glowing altogether.

Breathing a sigh of relief, he reached down to grab the rod. As he did so, the book suddenly flew open, pages whirring until they stopped.

And the book began to glow again.

But that wasn't what had Joey shaking in his shoes. It was the fact that some glowing orb shot out of the book. The orb then began to glow and take shape, turning into a—

"WOLF!" Joey screamed, scrambling away from the large wolf that was now present in the room.

The wolf slowly crept toward the blond, and it seemed to be…smirking? "All the better to eat you with, my dear," he growled before pouncing.

Joey cringed, fully expecting to be mauled. But when he didn't feel claws piercing his skin or teeth sinking into his flesh, he opened his eyes. And his jaw dropped.

"Away, foul beast!" cried the blond's savior. The man fending off the wolf with a sword looked like a knight…only fancier. And soon enough, the wolf scampered out of the library. Then the man turned around. "Are you all right, fair creature?"

And Joey's jaw dropped even further. "Wha…"

"I am Prince Charming, fair one," said the prince, taking the blond's hand and kissing it. "And you are?"

Joey was having a hard time forming words. And it was mainly due to the fact that this fucking Prince Charming looked…exactly…like…Seto. Except he was wearing a puffy outfit, had incredibly nice manners, and a charming smile. Maybe that was why they called him Prince Charming.

Wait! Prince Charming? A wolf?

Shoving the poor prince out of his way, Joey dove at the book and shut it. "Fuck!" he hissed. It was a book of classic fairy tales. Did that mean fairy tale characters would keep pouring out of the book?

Well, it looked like the book wanted to answer his question, because as soon as he'd had the thought, the damn book flew out of his hands and opened up again. What the hell was going to come out this time?

Joey took a step back when something—no, _seven_ somethings—popped out of the book. _Dwarves_? The seven _dwarves_?

"This can't be happenin'," said the blond as he eyed the seven dwarves who looked to be the same height as Yugi.

"Come on, men," said one of the dwarves. "Let's get to work."

"Work?" Joey blurted. "What do ya—NO! Not the floor!" But it was too late. The dwarves had decided that _mining_ the floor to the library was their mission now. Seto was going to kill him.

A tap on the blond's shoulder brought him out of his shock. "Fair one? Shall I slay these creatures for you?"

Fucking prince! "Slay? No! I don't want ya to slay anyone!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure!"

"Not even him?"

Joey turned around to see just who Prince Charming was pointing at. And it was another little man, but he wasn't a dwarf.

AND HE HAD THE BOOK!

"Give it to me!" the blond yelled, pouncing on the man, but he soon jumped out of his reach.

"You have to catch me first!" cried the little man as he scurried out of the library.

"Get back here!" Joey bolted out the door after him. He had to catch him—and quick! There was no telling what else might come out of that damn book.

As he turned around the corner, he determined that he was going in the right direction—if the three little pigs scurrying away from him were any clue. And was that the goose that laid the golden eggs?

Shaking his head, he flew down the stairs…and nearly landed on the little man. "Gotcha!" Joey cried. He grabbed the book and tried to yank it away.

"No! It's mine!"

"Give it to me!"

"Wait. I have an idea," said the little man.

Joey raised an eyebrow while tightening his hold on the book. "What?"

"I'll give you the book, but on one condition."

"And that is?"

"You have to guess my na—"

"Rumpelstiltskin. Now gimme the damn book."

The little man did so, a look of shock on his face. He seemed stunned that someone knew his name. Joey just thanked whatever might be up there that he remembered how to pronounce the name.

But now that he had the book…what was he going to do?

Well, the book decided it would be a good idea to release another character. So when the book flew out of Joey's hands yet again, he threw himself against the wall. What the hell was coming out of it this time?

"Another wolf?" the blond screeched. But a wolf had already come out of the book! "Please don't eat me!"

However, the wolf didn't seem to be paying him any mind. In fact, he just walked up to the front door, stood upright and…oh, fuck.

The wolf huffed…and he puffed…and he blew the front door down.

Joey felt his jaw drop for what felt like the hundredth time that day, so he didn't really notice that all the fairy tale characters that had been running rampant in the mansion had bolted out the door until it was too late.

"Excuse me, but you dropped this."

The blond turned to find Prince Charming—the Seto Kaiba lookalike—offering him the Millennium Rod. "Um…thank ya."

"May I ask what your name is now?"

"Uh…Joey. My name's Joey."

"That's a beautiful name," replied the prince, looking quite smitten.

"Why are ya starin' at me like that?" the blond questioned, taking a hesitant step back.

"I do believe I've found my damsel in distress. I shall save you and then we shall live happily ever after."

Joey smacked himself in the forehead with his palm. Great. He'd just released fairy tale characters into Domino City, Prince Charming was after him, and the book—the book!

"I need to find Bakura!" the blond exclaimed, snatching the rod out of the prince's hands and bolting for the door. With the rod and the book—and Prince Charming following him—he ran out of the mansion, fully expecting to see Domino already engulfed in flames.

Breathing a sigh of relief when it wasn't, he glanced over the surrounding area. Which way should he go? Where would Bakura be? Or should he get Yami instead?

Or perhaps…HE SHOULD FIND A WAY TO STOP LOSING THE BOOK WHENEVER IT WANTED TO RELEASE A CHARACTER!

Scrambling for the book, he braced himself for whatever hideous creature would come forth this time. But it was nothing but…a peddler. Well, that was a relief.

"Excuse me, sir," said the peddler, opening his hand to reveal some beans. "Can I interest you in some magic beans?"

"I don't want no fuckin' beans," cried Joey, smacking the peddler's hand away. "I got bigger problems to deal with!"

And boy, was he right. Once he'd hit the peddler's hand, the beans fell to the ground, sank in, and up shot a giant beanstalk. The blond stared at the ominous plant. Well, things could have been worse.

But maybe he thought that too soon.

"What's that rumblin' sound?" asked Joey as he looked up at the sky.

"I do believe it's the giant," replied Prince Charming.

"_Giant_!" the blond screamed. "No! I've gotta stop this! Take off your belt!"

The prince's eyes widened as he froze, a blush staining his cheeks. "But—my fair one—we must be married before—"

"Not that ya fuckin' idiot! I'm gonna use your damn belt to keep the book closed!" he said, nearly ripping the belt from Prince Charming's waist. "And I already gotta prince."

"Oh?" responded Prince Charming, his eyes narrowing. "Perhaps he's not the right prince for you if he's going to let his fair one remain in danger."

Securing the belt tightly around the book, Joey held it against his chest before taking the Millennium Rod and pointing it at the prince. "Just shut up and do as I say. I need to get to the Game Shop."

"Game Shop? What is this…Game Shop?"

Joey resisted the urge to stab the man. "Just follow me. And do NOT attack ANYTHIN' with that sword!"

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><p>Yugi jumped when he heard the door to the Game Shop burst open and slam against the wall. His head shot up, only to see a flustered looking Joey and…Seto in a weird costume. But then he noticed something even odder.<p>

"Why do you have the rod, Joey?" inquired Yugi.

"Help me!" the blond shrieked as he threw himself at the smaller boy.

"Is this your _prince_?"

"…why is Kaiba staring at me like that?"

"He's not Seto! He's Prince Charming!" Joey corrected, his arms flailing.

"…"

"Look!" the blond started. "Bakura gave me the Millennium Rod to look after—"

"Why—"

"Lemme finish! And I was playin' around with it in the library. It did somethin' to this book," he said, slamming the book of fairy tales on the counter. "And now fairy tale characters keep poppin' outta the book! He's one of them!"

Yugi looked from the book, to the Millennium Rod, to Joey, to…Prince Charming. "YAMI!"

"What is it, Yugi?" came Yami's voice from the other room as he came into the main part of the Game Shop. "We're getting ready to watch a movie."

"We have problems!" exclaimed Yugi.

Yami rolled his eyes before they caught a disheveled Joey and a weird looking Seto Kaiba. "I'll say. Who dressed you this morning, Kaiba?"

"Who is this Kaiba all of you keep referring to?" snapped the prince, finally losing his patience.

"What's all the commotion out here?" started Tristan, making his way out to them with Tea and Mokuba following. "Kaiba? Why are you dressed like that?"

"For the last time, I am not Kaiba! I am Prince Charming! Why don't you people understand this?"

Mokuba blinked a few times before pulling out his cell phone. He snapped a picture and decided to send it to his brother. He nearly regretted doing that, though, when he realized the photo he'd taken had this Prince Charming guy pulling Joey back to him by the waist.

"I am going to take my damsel and we are going to live happily ever after!" declared the prince.

Tires screeched outside of the Game Shop, and a few seconds later, the _real _Seto Kaiba burst through the doors. "Get your hands off of him," the brunet ground out.

"Aha! A foe!"

"Seto!" Joey cried, throwing himself at the brunet. "It's not what ya think! He's a character from a book! He's not—"

"This is your prince?" commented Prince Charming, eying his rival up and down. "He doesn't look like a prince."

"At least I don't look like some frilly fruitcake," spat Seto.

"You dare insult me?"

"When someone lays their hands on my Puppy, I'll do more than insult you."

"Fine! Then a duel we shall have!" replied Prince Charming.

"Let's duel," agreed Seto.

"But perhaps we should do this outside. Things could get messy in here."

As the two brunets left the shop, Joey's mind began to race a mile a minute. These two had _completely _different ideas as to what a duel was. And that meant…

"NO! NO DUEL!" the blond screamed as he ran out of the shop with the book and rod, his friends following suit. But it was too late. The duel had begun.

Prince Charming withdrew his sword from its sheath, brandishing it skillfully.

Seto, on the other hand, slipped his duel disk on. "No one—and I mean _no one_—messes with what is mine," he growled before setting his three Blue-Eyes White Dragons on his duel disk, summoning them in their holographic form.

The prince flinched as he witnessed the three dragons roar before him. "What sorcery is this? Princes don't tame dragons!"

Grinning sadistically, Seto flipped the safety switch off his duel disk. This was going to hurt. "White Lighting attack!"

Before they knew it, the brunet began chasing down Prince Charming with his Blue-Eyes White Dragons, the prince screaming all the way.

"Uh…Joey?" Yugi called, his voice shaking.

Joey turned to find the small boy pointing at the book in his arms. Glancing down, he realized the whole book was starting to glow…and it was _vibrating_?

Throwing the book onto the ground, the blond jumped back when the belt busted, allowing the possessed text to spew forth more characters from even _more_ stories. But this time, they shot off in all directions. Apparently, the book had decided to seek vengeance for being bound.

_Boom!_

"What the hell is that?" asked Tristan.

_BOOM!_

Joey's eyes widened in realization. "Everybody in the Game Shop! It's the giant!"

"Giant! You released a _giant_?" screeched Yami.

"Just shut up and run!" shouted the blond.

Everyone bolted for the Game Shop, slamming the door shut as soon as they got inside.

"That was close," muttered Joey as he slid down onto the floor.

"Wait! Where's Yugi?" gasped Yami.

"Uh, I think he just got kidnapped by the seven dwarves," said Mokuba as he looked out the window.

"_What_?" shrieked the former pharaoh. "Don't worry, Yugi! I'll save you!" They all watched as Yami raced after his lover.

"Joey?" called Mokuba.

"Yeah?" replied the blond.

"You might want to go back outside."

"Why?"

"Because this weird little man just grabbed the book."

Joey's head turned so fast, he was surprised he didn't tweak his neck. "Ya little _bastard_!" he screamed as he ran out of the shop, his friends following just in case they needed to help. "Gimme back that book!"

The little man cackled as he danced with the book. "I'll give it back if you can guess my na—"

"RUMPELSTILTSKIN!" everyone shouted. They weren't about to let that book out of their sight.

Rumpelstiltskin threw the book at Joey, nearly taking his head off. "Why do you people know my name? Do you know how infuriating that is? Well, fine! I'm changing it! You haven't heard the last of me!" he declared, waving his fist in the air before running off.

Joey felt his body sag. Turning back to face his friends, his heart skipped a beat again.

"Would you like an apple, my dear?" said an old lady, offering Tea an apple.

"NO!" screamed the blond, knocking the apple away from his friend. He then grabbed the basket of poisoned apples and chucked it at the old hag. "NO APPLES!"

"Joey! What the hell is going on?"

The blond spun around to see his boyfriend marching toward him, looking absolutely pissed. "…magic?"

"Like hell it's…ma…gic." Seto paused when he saw Yami chasing after the seven dwarves, who kept swearing up and down that the former pharaoh was trying to abduct their long lost brother.

"That's it!" cried Joey, throwing the book down onto the ground. He held the Millennium Rod above the book…and brought it down, stabbing the book relentlessly. "Stupid book! Stupid stories!"

With one finally stab, the rod shot out another beam.

Screeching, Joey jumped back as he saw glowing orbs filling the sky and getting sucked up by the book. The text began to glow and then…stopped.

"That's it?" the blond deadpanned. "All I had to do—this whole fuckin' time—was stab the fuckin' book with the rod?"

"…is that my book?"

"YA SAW ALL THAT AND ALL YA CARE ABOUT IS THE DAMN BOOK?" Joey exclaimed, whacking his boyfriend in the head with said book.

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><p>By the time Joey, Seto, and Mokuba returned to the Kaiba Mansion, Bakura was already standing outside.<p>

"Where the hell have you been?" inquired the thief.

"I've been…busy," replied the blond. There was no need to inform Bakura of what had happened, especially since he'd fixed everything.

"Why's my front door on the lawn?" asked Seto.

Joey looked at him sheepishly. "Uh, I'll explain later. Just go on inside."

The brunet eyed his suspiciously, but conceded. When he was gone, Joey thrust the Millennium Rod into Bakura's hands. "Take it! I never wanna see _it_ or _you_ ever again."

"WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED TO MY LIBRARY?" roared Seto.

The blond's eyes widened dramatically. "On second thought, Bakura, I think I'm gonna stay at your place for awhile."

"JOEY!"

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><p><strong>Author's Note – I've got a <strong>_**really **_**good genre for you next, Reiz.**


	2. Supernatural

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

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><p>Author's Note – I love you so much Reiz!<p>

The second genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…SUPERNATURAL!

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><p><strong>Supernatural (Rated T)<strong>

"I can't believe we're really doin' this," whispered Joey as he looked up at Seto with a vibrant smile on his face.

"I think it's about time you moved in with me and Mokuba," commented the brunet softly, wrapping an arm around his lover's shoulders. He stared up at Kaiba Mansion. Though ominous in stature, it was home. And it was going to be _their _home from now on. "I love you."

"I love ya, too," the blond stated excitedly, clenching the handle of his cat's carrying case. "And I'm glad ya let me bring little Mojo along."

"I may be more of a dog person," Seto remarked with a grin, "but I don't mind having a cat around. If anything, it'll be entertaining when Mokuba sees him. He's terrified of cats."

Joey laughed at that. How could anyone be terrified of cats? Especially Mojo. He was small in terms of the size of normal cats, but he was a fireball of energy. And he got into _everything_. Mojo would have an absolute blast exploring the mansion.

"Let's get you settled in, shall we?"

The blond smiled again, letting Seto lead him into his new home. He couldn't wait for their new life to begin.

* * *

><p>It was late evening by the time Joey had finished unpacking his things in Seto's room. No, it was <em>their<em> room now. He'd have to remember that.

The door to the bedroom was closed and Mojo was running loose; he figured he should let his cat get used to the place one room at a time. While Mojo explored, Seto took a shower in the adjacent bathroom. And with Mokuba playing video games in his room, Joey was quite surprised to hear footsteps out in the hallway.

Pausing in putting things away, Joey shooed his cat away from the door so he could peek out into the hallway. No one was there. That was strange. Closing the door, he went back to the dresser and started organizing his clothes.

However, Joey's head shot up when he heard a knock on the door. Slowly approaching the bedroom door, he opened it and peered out into the hall. But, again, there was no one there. He shut the door and just stared at it. This was so strange. No one should be here now. Seto had said all of the maids normally left around five. It was seven.

Shrugging it off as his imagination, he went back to work…and promptly jumped out of his skin when he heard a bang. His head shooting in the direction of the bathroom, the blond figured Seto had just dropped something.

But as he started folding clothes, he caught some movement out of the corner of his eye. When he turned to look, he found Mojo sitting down on the floor and staring at the door. His tail swished every so often. And it honestly looked like the cat was listening to something.

Setting down his clothes once more, Joey approached the door and crouched so he was at Mojo's level. And that's when he heard it.

Scratching.

And then something touched his shoulder.

"AH!" Joey screamed, jumping up, ready to fight his attacker. But it was only Seto. "Ya scared the _shit_ outta me!"

"I didn't mean to. What are you doing, anyway?" asked the brunet, rubbing his hair dry with a towel.

"I heard a scratchin' sound on the door," replied the blond.

"It's probably just the cat."

Joey shook his head. "Mojo's right here."

Frowning, Seto looked down at the cat and found him staring at the door. Kneeling next to Mojo, he began listening…and heard a scratching sound. Opening the bedroom door, he walked out of the room and put his ear to the wall.

The scratching stopped.

Coming back into the room, he shut the door…and the scratching began again.

"Maybe we have mice," stated the brunet absently. He then approached the wall and banged on it. The scratching immediately stopped. Perhaps he'd scared off whatever had been making the noise. "I'm sure it's nothing."

"But…never mind," said Joey, brushing the whole thing off. Perhaps he was just hearing the sounds of the house. It _was_ a new environment after all. He just had to get used to it. That was it.

* * *

><p>Seto smiled when he got up that morning. He enjoyed being able to see his lover sleeping next to him. And knowing that Joey probably wouldn't be up for a while—including his brother—the brunet rose from the bed, got dressed, and headed out of the room as quietly as he could with the idea of making breakfast for his lover running through his mind.<p>

Heading downstairs and into the kitchen, Seto stifled a groan when he noticed one of the chairs had been left out. "Mokuba," he grumbled. Didn't the kid know how to push in a chair?

Sliding the chair into its proper place, Seto looked up…and his stern expression faltered. All of the cabinet doors were open. It looked as if someone had just decided to open everything. Even the oven door was open.

Turning on his heel, Seto marched up the stairs and knocked on his brother's door. "Mokuba!"

A few seconds later, the young boy opened the door, wiping the sleep from his eyes. "Yes, Seto?"

"Come with me," the brunet snapped, nearly dragging the sleepy boy down the stairs and into the kitchen. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

Mokuba peered around the kitchen, confused. "What are you talking about?"

Seto was losing his patience. "Why did you open all the cabinets?"

The young boy's eyes widened. "I didn't do this!" he protested. "And even if I stood on the counter, I wouldn't have been able to open _those _ones! I'm too short!"

The brunet looked back at the kitchen, realizing that his brother was correct. "All right. I'm sorry I snapped at you."

"Do you think one of the maids did it?"

"Why do you ask that?"

Mokuba just shrugged. "While I was playing video games last night, I kept hearing footsteps in the hallway. I went to look, but no one was there."

"I don't know," replied Seto, deep in thought. "You can go back to bed. It's still a bit early."

"Okay," Mokuba said as he tried to stifle a yawn.

When he was gone, the brunet began shutting the cabinets and he closed the oven. He began to wonder if the workers in his home disliked the idea of him bringing his lover to live with them. Well, if that's how they wanted to play, then they could all consider themselves fired.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Joey lay curled up against Seto, his head resting on the brunet's chest as he listened to his heartbeat.<p>

"Ya didn't have to fire them," the blond said, rubbing his hand on his lover's stomach.

"Yes, I did," Seto replied sharply. "If they don't respect you, they don't respect me, Mokuba, _or_ our home. If they don't like the fact that I've brought you here, then they don't have to deal with it. They're gone. All of them."

"Don't ya think that's a little harsh? I mean…some of them probably have families they need to support."

"I hired a _service_ for this place. That means the company sent me whoever they could. They'll still be able to work elsewhere…just not here."

"Oh. Okay," the blond stated softly, making himself a little more comfortable. But he had to turn his head when he noticed the bathroom light flickering. Both he and Seto watched the light flicker until it promptly went out.

"Stupid light," grumbled the brunet as he slid off the bed. Joey followed him into the bathroom, where Seto flicked the light switch off and on. The light bulb seemed to have gone out.

Climbing onto the counter, Seto grabbed a towel and unscrewed the light bulb. He stared at it for a moment. It didn't look like it had burned out. Maybe it had only been loose. Screwing the light bulb back in, he told Joey to flip the switch.

Light flooded the bathroom. There was no flickering.

However, as soon as Seto reached the bathroom door, the light flickered…and went out.

"I'll change it in the morning," said the brunet, flipping the light switch off. "Let's just go to bed."

"Okay," replied Joey.

Once they were under the covers, they cuddled up next to each other, fully prepared to go to sleep.

_Click._

Light flooded the bedroom. Sitting up in the bed, they realized it was coming from the bathroom.

"I thought ya turned it off," said Joey.

"I did," insisted Seto as he got out of the bed. He headed for the bathroom and discovered that the light switch had been turned on. But he'd turned it off!

Flipping the light switch again, he went back to bed. And a few minutes later, he and Joey heard the light turning on again.

"What the fuck is going on?" Seto snapped, throwing the blankets off and storming out of the bed. He went up to the light switch and flipped it once more, turning the light off. "Let's see it turn on after this."

Joey hovered in the doorway, watching as Seto got up onto the counter again and reached for the light bulb.

"Ack!" the brunet hissed, making the blond jump.

"Are ya okay, Seto?" Joey asked in concern. "Seto?"

"I'm fine. I just burned my hand on the bulb. Hand me that towel, will you?"

The blond did as he was asked and began watching his lover deal with the light bulb again. Seto removed the bulb and tossed it into the trash. Then he stepped off the counter and inspected the light switch, making sure it was turned off. When things were to his satisfaction, he placed his arm around Joey and led him back to the bed.

"Let's get some sleep," whispered the brunet, letting the blond curl up against him.

And as Seto drifted off, Joey lay wide awake, wondering just what was going on with his new home.

* * *

><p>Mokuba grinned. He couldn't wait to dig into his lunch while he played his video game. Setting down his plate and can of soda, he reached for his controller and accessed the start menu. Blindly reaching for his soda, he frowned when his hand didn't make contact with it.<p>

Breaking eye contact with his TV, he turned to see where his soda was.

And found that it wasn't next to his plate. But he'd _put _it there. Glancing around his room, he spotted his soda on the floor. How had it gotten there?

Setting down his controller, he got up from his chair and retrieved the can and set it next to his plate. Sitting back down, he kept his eyes glued to his lunch while he fumbled around for his controller.

He couldn't find it.

Leaping out of his chair, he stared at the spot it should have been, but it just wasn't there.

"Mrow."

Mokuba's head shot up in the direction of his bedroom door. Mojo stood in his doorway, his video game controller on the floor in front of him. Swallowing hard, he approached the cat. And when he was close enough to grab the controller, he snatched it up. Then he just stood there, staring at Mojo, who was staring at him. It was really kind of creepy. But eventually, the cat left, so Mokuba turned around to get back to his lunch.

And froze.

It took all the courage he had to walk up to where he'd placed his lunch. With a shaking hand, he poked his soda can; it fell to the floor, opened and empty. And the food that had been on his plate was gone.

The controller fell from his hands, and he stood there shaking. What was he supposed to do now? Should he tell Seto? Joey?

…would they even believe him?

Not knowing what to do, he sank down onto the floor and closed his eyes, rocking himself back and forth. He didn't want to admit he was scared, but he was. He _really _was!

Maybe he had a right to be afraid of cats. His stuff disappearing hadn't occurred until Mojo entered the room…right?

* * *

><p>Seto pinched the bridge of his nose and shut his eyes. Staring at his laptop for so long was starting to make his eyes hurt. They felt so strained.<p>

Blinking a few times, his eyes finally readjusted to the screen. Leaning back in his chair, his gaze shifted as his eyes then panned his home office. It was nice working at home every now and then, especially since Joey was now living with them. That meant he could spend more time with his family.

Smiling at that, he looked back at the screen. But his head shot up when he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. His head snapping to the right, he stared at the corner of the far side of the room. He could have sworn something was over there.

Maybe it was just his imagination.

Or maybe it was just the cat.

Refocusing on his laptop once more, he began typing. But a few minutes later, he saw something move out of the corner of his eye again. Believing that either Mokuba or Joey was trying to play tricks on him, his head snapped up again, fully prepared to start scolding.

But he froze…and he felt his blood run cold.

Standing in the corner of the room stood a shadowy figure, ominous and threatening. It didn't move, but Seto could _feel_ the malice emanating from it. Swallowing hard, he stood and stared it down. He couldn't help but notice how much that figure reminded him of Gozaburo when he would stand watch over him while he studied when he was younger.

The brunet finally blinked. And when he opened his eyes again, the figure was gone. Had it only been his imagination? Perhaps he'd been staring at his computer screen for too long. Yes. That was probably it.

Shutting his laptop, he slowly moved toward the door. He gave the office one last look before turning off the light and closing the door behind him.

* * *

><p>When Seto got to their bedroom that night, he found Joey staring at Mojo…and neither of them were moving.<p>

"What are you doing?" the brunet asked, eyebrow raised.

Without turning, the blond answered, "He won't go onto that part of the floor." Joey indicated the space in front of the bed.

"I'm not sure I understand," replied the brunet honestly.

"Watch," said Joey as he picked up Mojo. He set him down on the floor in front of their bed. But as soon as the cat's feet touched the floor, he jumped onto the bed and began hissing. He then crouched on the bed and stared at the floor as if he were watching something they couldn't see.

Frowning, Seto knelt down and stared at the floor, too. When he heard Mojo growl at the floor, he had a feeling that the cat knew something they didn't.

"I don't know why he won't go there," stated the blond as he shrugged his shoulders.

"When did he start reacting like that?" inquired Seto.

"Uh…maybe about ten minutes ago," Joey replied unsurely.

And then suddenly, Mojo was perfectly fine. He hopped off the bed and started wandering around the room as if he'd never acted like he had a few minutes ago.

"Maybe…there's somethin' in the house he doesn't like," commented the blond absently.

Seto couldn't help but agree. Something was…off. And he really wished he knew what it was.

* * *

><p>Mokuba twisted and turned in his bed, unable to sleep. Looking at his clock, he discovered that it was only two in the morning. Pressing his palms into his eyes, he resisted the urge to start crying. He really wanted to sleep…but he was too scared to.<p>

And it didn't help that he felt like he was being watched in his own bedroom. Whenever he started dozing off, he would jolt awake as if someone had woken him. This had been happening ever since he'd gone to bed a few hours ago. He'd even gone so far as to keep a flashlight next to him so that he could shine it around his room to make sure nothing was there.

And there wasn't. Visually, anyway. But it still felt like there was another presence in the room with him.

Flopping back against his pillows, he clutched the flashlight to his chest. He squeezed his eyes shut and willed himself to go to sleep.

It didn't work.

Kicking his legs under the blanket, he immediately stopped when he felt his foot brush against something. Knees shooting to his chest, he turned the flashlight on. Swallowing hard, he slowly lifted the blanket, shining the flashlight under the sheets.

He shrieked and launched himself at his headboard. His lunch—the food that had disappeared earlier that day—was in his bed! How had it gotten there?

Well, he wasn't about to find out. He was too scared. And Mokuba didn't care that he was only ten. He would _not_ be sleeping alone tonight.

Jumping out of his bed, he raced for the bedroom door. Throwing it open, he ran down the hall before coming to a screeching halt in front of Seto and Joey's bedroom door. Rapping on it loudly, he clutched the flashlight to his chest again.

Soon, the door opened, revealing a groggy looking Seto. "Mokuba? What is it?"

"Can I sleep with you guys tonight, please?" he begged.

Noticing how scared his brother looked, he ushered the young boy into the room, where he immediately jumped onto the bed, startling Joey. When Mokuba buried himself under the blankets—head tucked away—both Seto and Joey grew concerned.

"Mokuba?" the blond started. "Are ya okay?"

"No," came the muffled reply.

Seto sat on the bed and tried to coax the young boy out. "Did you have a nightmare?"

"No," he said again.

"Then why are you so scared?" continued his brother. He'd never seen his brother this terrified.

Gradually, Mokuba pulled down the blankets, revealing his head. "I think the house is haunted," he answered bluntly.

"Why…do you think that?" questioned the brunet slowly.

"Something moved my stuff around while I was in my room today. First, my soda was gone, then my game controller, and then…"

"Then what?" asked Joey, who was starting to freak out.

"When I got my controller back, I went to sit back down in my chair. But…my soda can had been opened and it was empty…and my lunch was gone."

Seto was at a loss for words.

"And when I went to bed, I couldn't get to sleep. It felt like someone was watching me. And then I felt something under the blankets. When I went to look, it was my lunch from earlier today," Mokuba continued to explain. "I can't go back in that room, Seto."

_Bang!_

The three of them jumped at the sound, but it was only the door. It had shut on its own.

"The wind probably just blew it closed or something," said Seto, shrugging off the eerie feeling.

"But the window is closed," stated Joey. "I closed it myself."

The brunet pondered things for a moment before making a decision. "Give me the flashlight. I'm going to look around." Seto practically had to pry the flashlight from Mokuba's hands, but once he had it, he decided to investigate his brother's room.

Heading into Mokuba's room, he flipped the light switch…and found that the light wouldn't turn on. That was strange, to say the least. Shining the light across the floor, he followed the beam to the bed. Pulling back the blankets, he inspected the bed and found nothing. Perhaps Mokuba had just had a bad dream.

Turning around, he paused when he heard the TV turn on. His eyes shooting in the direction of the screen, he found a snowy picture meeting his gaze. Cautiously, he walked over to the TV. Fumbling around for the remote, he turned it off without a hitch.

Okay, he had to admit that had been a bit creepy. But there was a logical explanation for it, right? There had to be.

However, he didn't want to remain in the room any longer, so he headed back for the door…and he immediately stepped in something. Shining the flashlight down at his feet, he found that he'd stepped in the lunch Mokuba had talked about. That had _not_ been there when he'd entered the room.

Racing out the door, he skidded down the hall until he got to his own bedroom. Shutting the door, he stared at it before a voice brought him out of his stupor.

"Seto, what happened?" asked Joey, looking concerned. Mokuba was curled up in his lap.

"I'm not sure. Something's not right." The brunet really hated to admit that, but what had gone on was just too strange. "Let's just get some sleep."

Joey ushered Mokuba off his lap and into the center of the bed. Pulling down the blankets, Seto got in on his brother's opposite side. With Mokuba sandwiched between them, they settled down for the night, but it didn't prevent the younger boy from latching onto Joey.

"It's okay," said the blond. "You're safe."

When it seemed like Mokuba had finally dozed off, Seto and Joey began to do the same.

Until the blond shrieked and jumped up in the bed.

"What is it?" the brunet gasped after Mokuba had all but dog piled him.

"I-I felt somethin'," said Joey, inching away from the side of the bed. "It felt like somethin' sat next to me."

"Are you sure it wasn't—"

"Yes, I'm sure it wasn't Mojo! He's curled up over there!" cried the blond, pointing to the chair on the far side of the room. And, sure enough, the cat was curled up on the chair, fast asleep.

"Can…we sleep with the light on?" Mokuba asked softly as he looked up at his brother.

"Sure," replied the brunet as he turned on his bedside lamp. "Come on. Everyone get back in the bed. Let's _try _to get some sleep, okay?"

They settled down; however, sleep was the furthest thing from any of their minds.

* * *

><p>For a first, Joey was the first one up. He hadn't slept a wink last night, but he'd tried to do his best to ensure that Mokuba had. Whenever a noise or shadow startled the young boy, the blond had made sure to comfort him.<p>

And now he was down in the kitchen preparing to make breakfast. As he set about making some eggs, he felt someone nudge his arm. Turning around, he fully expected to see either Seto or Mokuba.

But no one was there.

His heart racing a mile a minute, he looked around the vacant kitchen, waiting to either be touched or to see dishes flying about the room.

Nothing.

Shrugging it off, he turned back around to begin cooking the eggs. A few seconds later, he felt a hand run through his hair. Screaming, he spun around, knocking the pan of eggs onto the floor. Pressing himself up against the counter, he shook like a leaf as his eyes panned the kitchen again.

No one was here! So who was touching him?

"Joey? Are you all right?" called Seto, entering the kitchen with Mokuba.

"Somethin' touched me. _Twice_!"

The brunet sighed while Mokuba looked fearful. "It was probably just your imagination," commented the brunet.

"I did not imagine it!" the blond snapped.

"_Seto._"

The three of them froze after hearing someone whisper the brunet's name.

"Ya guys heard that, right?" Joey deadpanned.

The Kaiba brothers nodded.

"I told ya I wasn't imaginin' things."

* * *

><p>Seto, Joey, and Mokuba sat in the living room. With everything that had gone on so far, it seemed the safest option. But with the brunet pacing back and forth, the other two became more and more unnerved.<p>

"I don't understand what's going on," Seto said, finally stopping. "I don't…there _has _to be an explanation for this."

"There is," began Mokuba. "The house is haunted."

"If it were haunted, don't you think something would have happened _prior_ to Joey moving in?"

"Wait," started the blond. "This stuff didn't start happenin' until I moved in. Did…I cause this?"

"Maybe the ghosts don't want Joey here," suggested Mokuba.

"This house is _not _haunted! And it has _nothing_ to do with Joey moving in!" the brunet snapped, breathing heavily, his white breath—

Wait. _White_ breath?

Seto took a deep breath and exhaled again, the same white mist appearing in front of his mouth. Why was it suddenly so cold?

"It's freezin'," said Joey as he rubbed his arms.

"Yeah! I can see my breath!" exclaimed Mokuba.

And then, as suddenly as the cold spot had appeared, it was gone and the room's temperature was back to normal.

"Ya still think this place ain't haunted?" inquired the blond, looking uneasy.

Seto still refused to say that the place was haunted. There just _had _to be a logical explanation for everything. But was he willing to jeopardize the well-being of Mokuba and Joey to prove it?

* * *

><p>It had finally reached late evening without any more unexplained incidents. Joey and Mokuba were upstairs in the bedroom doing whatever it was to keep themselves occupied. They were probably playing with Mojo; his brother had finally gotten over his fear of cats, but now he was afraid of ghosts.<p>

And here he was, sitting in a chair in the living room, trying to figure out what to do. Sighing, he leaned back in the chair and stared up at the ceiling. What was he supposed to do? He'd wracked his brain, trying to find an explanation or reason for why strange things were happening in their home, but he kept coming up with nothing.

Was the mansion really haunted? Or was it just a figment of their imaginations? Were they suffering from some sort of mass hysteria or something? Groaning, he stood and stretched, making his way out of the living room and up the stairs. He paused, however, when a familiar scent caught his attention.

Cigars.

He hadn't smelled those in years. Not since Gozaburo was still alive.

Turning around, he looked about himself, trying to detect where the strong aroma was coming from. He saw nothing, heard nothing. Not a wisp of smoke or an inhalation of the amorphous cigar.

"_Seto._"

The brunet inhaled sharply. He'd heard his name again, but this time…it sounded harsher than before, like the person saying it was angry.

"_Seto!_" the voice hissed again. The smell of cigars was becoming more pungent now. It was almost as if someone was smoking right under his nose.

Bolting up the stairs, he burst into the bedroom, frightening both Joey and Mokuba. Slamming the door shut, Seto stared at the door, trying to ignore the scent that seemed to linger around him.

"Seto?" Mokuba called out unsurely.

Suddenly, the door burst open of its own accord, startling the brunet. He fell back against the bed and watched in horror as the mansion seemed to come to life.

The pictures on the walls began flying off, banging as they flew across the room. Books started falling off the shelves while the lamps kept turning themselves on and off. It was like the mansion was seething in anger.

"Ah!" came Joey's sharp cry.

Mokuba and Seto turned their gazes quickly in his direction, but they were too late to react.

"Help!" the blond screamed as his body was viciously dragged by an invisible form across the floor and out of the bedroom. He continued to scream, even as the bedroom door shut after him.

"Joey!" Seto shouted, racing toward the door. He grabbed the knob and yanked the door as hard as he could. But he failed in opening it. It was as if someone had nailed the door shut. And hearing Joey's screams and pleads for help didn't make things any better.

"Mokuba, help me!"

The young boy sprung into action, grabbing his brother around his waist and pulling him while Seto pulled the door open. When there was enough space for the brunet to place his hand between the door and the frame, he made to grab it, but the door snapped shut, nearly slicing his fingers off in the process.

"Shit! Joey!" This couldn't be happening! Seto ran his hands through his hair, panic coming to the forefront of his mind. What was going on? What was happening to Joey?

Growing angry, he kicked the door. But that only served to anger whatever apparition was at work. For as soon as he assaulted the door, his body flew across the room and hit the bed.

"Seto!" Mokuba shrieked, coming to his brother's aid.

The brunet breathed heavily, pain stinging his chest. As he lifted his shirt, he gasped when he saw what looked to be scratches on his skin. Jumping to his feet, he threw caution to the wind. "STOP!" he roared.

Everything stopped. It was quiet. Deathly quiet.

And then the door creaked open, revealing a very eerie calm in the hallway. But there was something else that made it all the more worse.

Joey was quiet as well. And he was nowhere to be seen.

Grabbing Mokuba's hand, they cautiously made their way out into the hallway, Mojo following them as they took it one step at a time. Why was it so quiet?

"Joey?" Seto called out anxiously. Where was he?

As they made their way down the stairs, the familiar scent of cigars struck the brunet's nose. "Do you smell that?"

"Yeah," replied Mokuba shakily.

Maybe…if they followed the scent, they'd find Joey.

"This way," said Seto, leading his brother into the living room. The cigar smell was extremely potent here. "Joey?"

"Seto! Look!" cried Mokuba, snatching Mojo to his chest.

He did. Then nearly fell over in shock.

There, against the wall, was Joey. And he was clawing at his neck…like someone was keeping him in place by holding him there. When Seto realized the blond's face turning red, he understood that he was being choked.

"Joey!" he gasped, running over to him. But he skidded to a halt when something appeared next to the blond. An apparition? Whatever it was, it had its back to them. And it seemed to be examining Joey.

"You stay away from him!" Seto yelled, grabbing a book and throwing it at the entity. It flew right through it.

The manifestation spun around at that, and the brunet stumbled backward when he noticed the human-shaped being looked a _lot_ like Gozaburo. It had the same menacing eyes. And the smell of cigars became even stronger.

Suddenly, the mansion began vibrating, rattling as if they were in an earthquake. Joey plummeted to the floor, gasping for breath. Seto raced over to him, picking him up bridal style as he hurried back over to Mokuba and Mojo.

The apparition approached them then as the wall behind it began to form words in a sickly red color.

_Get Out!_

"Mokuba, run! Get out of the house!" Seto demanded, clutching Joey in his arms as they ran for the front door.

The young boy threw open the door as soon as he got there. And as soon as they made it outside, the door slammed shut behind them.

Reaching the very front of the mansion's property, Seto finally set Joey down on his feet, inspecting every inch of him. "Are you all right?"

The blond nodded, still trying to get his breathing under control.

Once they'd settled down somewhat, they looked back at the mansion, which had ceased its menacing nature. But that didn't matter anymore.

They would _never_ go back in that place. Never.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note – I have to say, writing this one was a lot of fun!<strong>


	3. Crime

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – I must warn you that there is graphic, violent, bloody content in this drabble.<p>

The third genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…CRIME!

* * *

><p><strong>Crime (Rated M)<strong>

Joey paused in his steps to the front door. He stood in the foyer of Kaiba Mansion, hand resting on the wall in a means to steady himself as his head swam. He felt so dizzy and out of it; he just wanted to plop down and sleep. But the incessant buzzing of the doorbell and the barking from his and Seto's dog, a golden retriever named Kryssi, prevented him from doing just that.

Nudging their dog away from the front door with his leg, Joey shakily answered the door and was met by an odd sight. "Mr. Joseph Wheeler?" inquired the police officer standing in the doorway.

The blond blinked a few times as he tried to focus on the man. "It's Kaiba now. Joey Kaiba," he muttered in response, hand immediately playing with the ring on his finger.

"Yes. I had heard…about that," the officer replied uneasily.

Joey's head started to pound. "Why are ya here?" he asked. Did he just slur his words? Why did he feel so strange?

"I'm afraid I have some bad news," the officer continued, looking absolutely devastated. "Your…husband, Seto Kaiba…he…"

"He…what?" Joey didn't like the look the man had on his face; it was as if he really didn't want to be there.

"A car bomb went off," the police officer said in a rush, "in your husband's car as it left Kaiba Corp. about an hour ago. By the time help could arrive, everything had been…you know. This was all that was intact."

The blond watched as a ring that matched his own was placed in his hand, singed black. It was Seto's. Joey gasped, his eyes shooting toward the man, desperately hoping that what the man said wasn't true.

"I'm very sorry for your loss," the officer said reluctantly. "I'm really very sorry." And with that, the man left.

Joey mutely shut the door behind him and stared at it for a full five minutes before reality sank in, and when it did, there was no stopping how distressed he became. Dropping to the floor, he broke down sobbing, Seto's ring falling from his hand and landing on the floor. The blond didn't even have a chance to react when Kryssi suddenly ran over and swallowed the ring, thinking it was a treat of some sort.

"NO!" Joey screamed, startling the dog. He clambered to his feet, all sanity leaving him as he chased after her. Grabbing Kryssi by the collar, he stumbled as he dragged her into the kitchen, fumbling around until his hands landed on the object he was looking for.

But then Kryssi broke out of his grasp.

"No!" the blond sobbed. The ring was all he had left. It was all he had left of Seto. His husband was dead! He _needed _that ring!

Stumbling out of the kitchen, he found Kryssi standing in the foyer again. Joey approached her slowly before dropping to his knees on the floor. The dog then walked up to him and licked his tear-stained face. Placing an arm around Kryssi, the blond hugged her.

And then he brought the knife down.

Kryssi yelped only once before she ceased moving. When she collapsed on the floor, blood pooling around her, Joey clutched the sides of his face, smearing it with the dog's blood. He rocked back and forth, crying as he stared at her still form. Clutching the knife tighter in his hands, he thrust it into Kryssi's stomach, flaying her open. Joey hacked and slashed her bloody corpse, pulling out her organs and intestines, digging around until he found what he was looking for.

The blond gave a cry when he discovered Seto's ring. The knife clattering to the floor, he held the ring to his chest, wheezing as he sobbed, the blood surrounding him soaking into everything.

Suddenly, the front door opened, startling Joey into raising his head.

"Joey?" Seto gasped, taking in the sight before him. A few of his bodyguards flanked him. Stepping into the foyer, the brunet stopped; he could only stare.

"Seto?" the blond started slowly, as if confused. He slipped as he tried to stand, but once he succeeded, he staggered over to him. "Seto?"

"Joey…what did you _do_?"

"Said ya were dead," he replied, his bloodied hands cupping the brunet's face. "Real? You're real?"

"Sir…his eyes are dilated," stated one of Seto's bodyguards.

The brunet swallowed hard as he took in Joey's appearance again. It did look as if he had been drugged. "Yes, Joey. I'm real."

The blond fumbled around for Seto's hand before he slipped the bloody ring onto the brunet's empty finger. Looking back up, Joey smiled with tears still in his eyes. But then the expression left him, only to be replaced with the blond spewing the contents of his stomach onto the floor. Joey then fell forward into Seto's arms as he passed out.

Clutching the unconscious blond in his arms, the brunet turned to his men. "Someone call an ambulance!" he ordered. The men scrambled to do as he said.

Looking back at Joey, Seto fought to keep himself under control. What the hell was going on?

* * *

><p>"Mr. Kaiba?"<p>

Seto raised his head slowly, focusing his attention on the doctor in front of him. Rising to his feet, he cleared his throat. "Well?"

"We ran some tests," the doctor began slowly, "and we found a drug in his system. Flunitrazepam, also known as Rohypnol."

The brunet narrowed his eyes at her. "Someone gave him a roofie?"

"I believe so," she replied. "This means that Joey might not remember what took place during the time the drug was going through his system. And that means he might not remember what he did."

Seto stared at her, his mind racing.

"I know that a lot has happened within the past few hours. And I don't mean to overstep my bounds, but you need to get a handle on this before it gets out of control," addressed the doctor. "Would you like to see him now? He might be awake."

The brunet nodded gradually. Then he began following the doctor as she led him down the hall and into a room. "Thank you," he said roughly as he took in Joey's appearance.

"Seto?" Joey croaked out, turning his head to see his lover. "Where—"

"You're in the hospital," the brunet said, his voice strained. He took a seat next to the blond and grabbed his hand. "You really scared me."

"Why am I here?" he asked in confusion.

Seto clutched Joey's hand. "What do you remember?"

"Uh…Duke and some other of our business associates came over to discuss business. We had drinks and then…they left. And…I don't remember what happened after that."

Taking a deep breath, the brunet started filling in the blanks. "You were drugged, Joey. I'm assuming it was when you had drinks? Do you know who gave you a drink?"

"I think it was…Duke…" Joey's voice trailed off. "Wait! Did he give be a roofie? Was I ra—"

"No, that didn't happen. We didn't find you like that," Seto reassured him hurriedly.

"Then what happened, Seto?" exclaimed the blond as his breathing quickened.

The brunet didn't know if he should tell him or not, but he'd find out eventually, right? "Earlier today, a car bomb went off, completely destroying my car. But I got a tip ahead of time…barely. I wasn't in the car when it happened, but my driver was. A cop came by the mansion and told you about the explosion. He gave you my ring; they found it in the debris."

"Your…ring?" Joey looked down at Seto's hand, finding the ring there. "But—"

"I'd taken it off earlier and locked it away in my desk when I had to meet with some businessmen at Kaiba Corp. Some don't approve of our situation and I didn't want too many questions being asked. You know this already, though."

And he did. Joey and Seto had married in secret. But great responsibility came with it. Only a select few business associates knew about their situation; the trusted ones. It saved them from losing too much investment in Kaiba Corp.

"After you got the ring…we gathered that Kryssi might have…swallowed it. You went ballistic and _really_ wanted to get that ring back," said Seto, eyes pleading. He really didn't want to tell him.

Joey swallowed hard. "What did I do, Seto?"

"…you…killed her…to get the ring back."

The blond felt as if he'd been thrown into a pool of ice water. The shock was too overwhelming. He'd killed their dog! Their loyal, loving dog! All for a stupid ring!

"Joey! Take it easy! Nurse!" Seto shouted when his lover became hysterical. His heart monitor was going haywire.

Suddenly, a nurse burst into the room. "I need to sedate him," she announced, rushing over to the blond and injecting him with something. Gradually, Joey's breathing slowed and his heart rate returned to normal. "You should leave. He needs to rest."

Reluctantly, the brunet left the room and wandered around the hospital. He needed to do some serious investigating. Seto needed to find out why someone had rigged his car with a bomb…and why someone—who might be Duke—had drugged his lover.

He was going to get to the bottom of this…even if it killed him.

* * *

><p>"What are we looking for, exactly?" inquired Roland, one of Seto's most trusted men.<p>

The brunet glared at the screen as they accessed the security footage of the mansion's office. "I'll know it when I see it. There," he said, pointing at an image of Duke.

Roland paused the footage. In it, they could see Duke placing something in a drink he was preparing. "Shall I continue playing it, sir?"

"Yes," Seto growled.

As the footage continued to play, they witnessed Duke passing off the tainted drink to Joey, who gradually sipped at it until the glass had been completely drained. Duke had been watching him the whole time. Then, as the other businessmen gradually left, leaving Duke as the only person other than Joey present, something else happened.

Duke's cell phone went off.

"Can we make out what he's saying?" asked Seto, turning the volume up as high as it would go.

"I'm afraid not, sir."

"Hm." They continued watching as Duke talked to someone on his cell phone. Eventually, he hung up and looked quite frantic and agitated. And then he left. "Wait a minute."

"What?" replied Roland as he looked to where Seto was pointing.

"The time. He got this call a couple minutes before the car bomb went off."

"Do you think he's working with someone?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure as hell finding out," snarled the brunet as he whipped out his own cell phone and made a call. The car bomb incident was already being investigated, and with this evidence, he could easily have the detectives access Duke's cell phone records.

Someone was going to pay.

* * *

><p>Seto paced the precinct with Joey as they awaited news from the detectives. And when one of them, Detective Johnson, approached them looking grim, the two of them braced themselves. "Mr. Kaiba? We know who spoke with Duke Devlin near the time of the explosion."<p>

"Well? Who was it?" snapped the brunet.

"…Mokuba Kaiba," he replied reluctantly.

"What?" Joey gasped.

Seto couldn't believe it. How could he? His own brother? Sure, things hadn't been easy since Mokuba turned sixteen, but to go so far as to—

"Are you sure it was him?" the brunet asked slowly.

"I'm afraid so," answered Detective Johnson. "I'll need to bring Duke Devlin and Mokuba Kaiba in for questioning. Something of this magnitude can't just slide by."

"I understand. Bring them in."

* * *

><p>"So," started Detective Johnson as he stared at Duke in the interrogation room, "do you know why you're here?"<p>

"Other than the fact that I'm being wrongfully accused of something? No."

"And what are you being wrongfully accused of?"

"…"

"Could it perhaps have something to do with your meeting at Kaiba Mansion earlier today?"

"I didn't drug him, you know," said Duke as he crossed his arms.

"Drugged who?"

"Joey. I didn't drug him."

"I never said anything about him being drugged. Why would you automatically jump to that? You've only been brought in for questioning. But he _was_ drugged. Someone gave him a roofie. How did you know he was drugged?"

"I…heard it on the news," Duke replied slowly.

"Really? That's news to me. The media knows nothing about what happened to Mr. Kaiba's _husband_. That's been kept under wraps. So I'll ask again. How did you know he was drugged?" Johnson insisted.

"…"

"No answer? Let's show you some pictures, then," he said, opening the folder he had with him and showing Duke a few still shots of himself dropping something into a drink he passed off to Joey. "Do you want to explain that?"

Duke's eyes widened. "There were cameras?" he whispered, his head shooting up in surprise.

"So you admit to slipping Joey a roofie?"

"Yes! I mean, no—look, this wasn't my idea!" he shouted, jumping from his seat.

"Oh? So this was all someone else's master plan?" inquired Johnson. "Is it the same person who called you at Kaiba Mansion around the same time you drugged Joey?"

"…"

"You know…Mokuba's here, too. How much do you want to bet that he'll start spilling his guts before you do? Think about that while I go get some coffee, hm?"

"Wait!" exclaimed Duke, stopping him. "I'll talk."

* * *

><p>"I don't have to answer any of your questions," stated Mokuba, glaring heatedly at Detective Johnson.<p>

"That's all right. You can just listen to me talk for now," the man replied. "I have your friend Duke in the other room. I had a nice chat with him earlier."

Mokuba's eyes flashed menacingly. "Oh?"

"Yeah. We started talking about the business meeting he went to, how he drugged your brother-in-law, and how he received a phone call from someone around the same time the car bomb went off in your brother's car."

"I don't know anything."

"Really? Because I have some records saying that you do. You're the one who called Duke. I've got the records to prove it. For someone so smart, you really did slip up."

"I had _nothing_ to do with that."

"Your buddy Duke says differently."

"Whatever he said, he's lying."

"You seem fairly sure about that," commented Johnson. "What would he be lying about?"

"…"

"Duke told me that it was your idea to drug Joey. And that you were behind the car bomb that destroyed your brother's car, killing some innocent people in the process."

"It's a lie," snapped Mokuba.

"Really? Your brother's wedding ring was found in the wreckage. He claims that he'd locked it in his desk earlier that day. We checked for prints. Yours were everywhere."

"I go into his office all the time. I _do_ work there."

"Does your work there include breaking inside of a locked drawer using a letter opener? Because we found evidence of that, too."

"I don't have to tell you anything," said Mokuba.

"Then maybe you'll tell _me_," growled Seto as he entered the room. Mokuba immediately jumped to his feet. "What the _fuck_ did you think you were doing?"

"_Me_? What was _I _doing? You're the one who's screwed everything up! You just threw away everything we worked for and for what? That blond bitch?"

"Don't you dare insult him! He is _my _husband now and _your _brother-in-law! Both of you are my family. Family has always come first for me. The company is second. _You_ know that."

"No. _Joey_ comes first. Not me. Why else would you screw me out of everything?" Mokuba shouted, heaving in agitation.

Seto's mood sobered somewhat. "What are you talking about?"

Mokuba laughed hollowly at that. "You really think I didn't know? You _own_ Kaiba Corp., but as soon as you married Joey…if anything happened to you, the entire company would go to him! _Him_! What about _me_?"

The brunet blinked a few times. "Mokuba—"

"So yes! I planted the bomb! I told Duke to drug Joey so that he could get him doped up enough to sign the papers giving Kaiba Corp. to me once you were dead! But no! You had to go and screw everything up again!" he screamed, launching himself at Seto. But Johnson stepped in to apprehend him.

"I can't believe you," the brunet said in astonishment. "Since when did you become so obsessed with the company?"

"Since you decided you cared about Joey over me!"

Seto shook his head. "You're wrong, Mokuba. You did all this…for nothing."

"…what do you mean?"

"Originally, I did own all of Kaiba Corp., but as soon as Joey and I planned to get married, I changed all that. I split the ownership into thirds. One third remained mine, one third went to Joey, and one third went to you. I was just about to name you V.P. before all of this happened. And in the event of my death, my third would be split between both you and Joey."

Mokuba's eyes widened. "What?"

"I always put my family first," Seto repeated, looking hurt. He couldn't believe this. "Don't you realize what you've done? You _killed_ someone, Mokuba. You killed my driver and the people within the vicinity of the explosion. And all because you wanted me dead for the company?"

"Seto…" Mokuba's voice trailed off as his brother spun on his heels and left the room.

Detective Johnson looked back at the younger Kaiba. "It looks like you'll be going to prison for a very long time."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note – This one felt like it could have been a multi-chapter fic. What did you guys think?<strong>


	4. Science Fiction

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – Here's a little side note on the genre science fiction. This genre does not just include space or aliens, but incorporates future scientific or technological advances, which will be the basis of <em>this<em> drabble.

The fourth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…SCIENCE FICTION!

* * *

><p><strong>Science Fiction (Rated T)<strong>

"Why won't ya tell me what we're doin' here?" whined Joey as he dragged his feet while following Seto deep inside Kaiba Corp.

"I already told you. It's a surprise. Now shut the hell up already," snapped the brunet.

"Hey! Ya can't talk to me like that on our anniversary!"

"I can talk to you however I very damn well please," replied Seto, growing tired of the blond's incessant nagging. Couldn't he just be patient? Was that so hard? Looking back at Joey—and noticing that he was sighing in boredom—he figured it was.

"Seto—"

"Just give me five more fucking minutes! Is that so much to ask?"

Joey crossed his arms and pouted. "Whatever. Ya probably forgot about our anniversary anyway and now you're stallin' for time."

Seto had to resist the urge to throttle his lover. But with what was in store…it would be a bad idea. A very bad idea.

Taking a deep breath, he punched in a code that unlocked a door to their left. Joey jumped when the door suddenly popped open, revealing what looked like a laboratory.

"Uh…what is this place?"

It was the brunet's turn to sigh. "This is Kaiba Corp.'s laboratory. We do a number of experiments down here."

"What kind of experiments?' asked the blond as he peeked inside. Seto shoved him in.

"You'll see."

"You're not gonna experiment on me are ya?" Seto just stared at him. "ARE YA?"

"Just shut up and follow me," the brunet replied as he marched down the brightly lit hallway.

"That's not an answer!" Joey yelled after him, but he followed anyway.

As they proceeded down the hall, the blond couldn't help but peer into the windows of closed doors, hoping to catch a glimpse of some so-called experiments. Even with his face pressed up against the glass, he really couldn't make out much.

"We're here," Seto announced. And was he…smiling? Yes, he was.

"And what's here?" inquired Joey.

"My surprise for you."

"And that would be?"

"Let's just say we'll be making a couple _additions_ to our household."

"…"

"_Live_ additions."

"No!" Joey screamed, waving an accusing finger at his lover. "No way in hell!"

Seto frowned, confused. "No what?"

"That's what ya meant by experiments! And ya know what? Ya can count me out!"

"What are you _talking_ about?"

"You're gonna try to impregnate me!" the blond declared as he backed away from his lover.

Seto opened his mouth before closing it again. After a while, his wits returned. "Where the hell did you get _that_ idea from?"

"Um…live additions?"

"I am only saying this once, Joey," the brunet started, feeling a headache coming on. "I am _not_ impregnating you."

"Okay," the blond replied in embarrassment. "…are ya sure?"

"_Joey_—"

"Okay! I got it! You're not knockin' me up!"

"Good. Now get in here," he said as he shoved Joey into the room. The both paused in their steps when someone—who looked like a doctor—approached them.

"You're here just in time!" the man squealed, which only served to unnerve Joey. "The hatching will begin shortly!"

"Hatchin'?" the blond echoed, his eyes shooting to the brunet.

"We've been…experimenting on creating new life forms. By manipulating the DNA of current _existing_ organisms, we've been able to create a new species of animal," explained Seto.

Joey froze. What the hell had his lover created? Would it grow to be enormous and devour them? Would it destroy the world or civilization as they knew it? Hadn't Seto _seen_ movies like this?

"What did ya create?" the blond asked hesitantly.

"Dragons," Seto replied excitedly.

"…dragons?" Joey's eyes widened.

"Yes. Full grown, they shouldn't be any bigger than a medium-sized dog. And we currently have two eggs ready to hatch."

"How'd ya do this?"

"Well, we constructed the DNA for the dragons using a variety of components from the DNA of existing reptiles. After that had been accomplished, we created the embryos and implanted them in an animal that would be able to develop the eggs to their appropriate sizes," elaborated the brunet.

"What kinda animal did ya use?"

"…I can't be sure about that. I just know we have two eggs that are ready to hatch."

"Are these dragons gonna be able to fly?" Joey asked. The dragons he knew of could fly.

"I don't know."

"What the hell _do_ ya know then?"

"That once the dragon eggs hatch, we'll be taking the dragonlings home and caring for them."

"…dragonlings?"

"Shut up. That's what I'm calling them," the brunet snapped.

"Okay…" trailed off Joey. "So…this is the surprise? Baby dragons?"

"Yes," Seto replied unsurely. "Are you…unhappy with that?"

"No! I love it! It's just…"

"Just what?"

"I just can't really see ya takin' care of a baby anythin'."

The brunet stared at him.

"What?"

And he continued to stare.

"Would ya stop lookin' at me like that?"

"MR. KAIBA, THEY'RE HATCHING!" screeched the doctor-looking man.

Seto nearly trampled Joey over on his way to the eggs that were beginning to tremble. The brunet had been right in describing their size. They were about the size of an ostrich egg, except they looked leathery and were a dark brown.

Suddenly, a little crack started to form near the top of one of the eggs.

"They're hatchin'," Joey whispered. Seto put his arm around the blond and smiled.

When the dragon in the first egg finally managed to make it out, the blond gasped in surprise. The dragonling had pitch-black scales and ruby-red eyes; it looked like a miniature version of his Red-Eyes Black Dragon. And when it called to him, Joey's heart melted.

"Since this one seems to have imprinted on you, let's have you clean him off, hm?" said the man next to him.

"Okay," the blond replied in awe. "Wait. How do ya know it's a him?"

"We genetically modified these dragons. This one was to be male and the other one female."

"Oh," he replied, looking back at the dragon.

"Here. Clean him off with this."

Joey took the towel that was handed to him and approached the baby dragon. It looked up at him adorably as he took the towel and began cleaning him off.

"You're so cute, I could eat ya up!" he said. "Wait. What's he supposed to eat?"

No answer.

"Seto?" Joey turned to look at his lover and ask again, but paused when he saw that the other egg had hatched. _This_ dragonling was the purest white he had ever seen as well as startling blue eyes. She was beautiful.

"Ya made sure they looked like _our_ dragons…huh?"

The brunet smiled and nodded as he, too, began cleaning off the new baby dragon. "Yes. They sure are precious."

"Yeah."

"OW!"

"What happened?" Joey exclaimed, alarmed.

"She bit me!" Seto accused, glaring at the little dragon.

"Hm…I guess she's hungry. Do dragons drink milk?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know?"

"Fine! Let's just take them home and keep givin' them stuff until we find somethin' they like!"

* * *

><p>They liked meat. <em>Raw<em> meat. _Lots_ of raw meat. Joey didn't know something about the size of a kitten could eat so much. Where the hell was all that meat going?

"What're we gonna name them?" the blond asked as his little black dragonling chewed on a raw steak.

"I was thinking of naming her Aoi because of her eyes," Seto commented as he wiggled a piece of steak in front of said dragonling. She kept snapping at it and missing.

"Okay. Then I'll name him Akai," he said with a grin. "And ya shouldn't tease her like that."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because—"

"OW! SHE BIT ME _AGAIN_!"

"…I told ya not to tease her."

"Shut up!"

* * *

><p>"Where the hell is he?" Seto growled as he searched high and low for Akai. He was nowhere to be seen.<p>

When they'd gotten up that morning, Aoi was nestled up between him and Joey in their bed…but Akai was gone.

_Crunch!_

Seto stopped and listened.

_Crunch! Crack!_

The sound was coming from his study. Bracing himself, the brunet pushed open the door…and nearly screamed.

Sitting on his desk was Akai.

And he was gnawing on his laptop!

"No! Bad Akai!" Seto roared as he threw himself at the dragonling.

Akai squawked and jumped to the ground before scurrying out the door. Turning to face his mangled laptop, the brunet realized that there was no saving it.

Spinning on his heel, he marched out of the room and into the bedroom where Joey sat with both Aoi and Akai. The black dragonling squawked again once he spotted Seto.

"What did ya do?" Joey accused, glaring at the brunet.

"What did _I_ do? _He's_ the one you should be accusing! He destroyed my laptop!"

"Seto, he's just a baby! He didn't know any better! And he probably got hungry while we were sleepin'!"

"So he ate my _laptop_?"

"Okay, so maybe I don't have an explanation for that. And maybe ya should lock your study from now on. And maybe we need to…dragonling proof the mansion. But ya can't really blame him. He didn't know any better."

Seto frowned, knowing when he'd lost an argument. He looked at Akai, who'd rolled over onto his back, looking up at him with what could only be described as puppy-eyes. And how could he stay mad at a face that looked like that?

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he rubbed Akai's belly and smiled. Suddenly the dragonling's stomach rumbled and out came a very loud belch…accompanied with flames.

Joey quietly picked up Akai in one arm as he grabbed Aoi with the other. He slowly backed out of the room, trying not to look at Seto's singed face.

"I'm gonna…go get them somethin' to eat," he said as he left the room. By the time he made to the kitchen, Seto let out a roar that told everyone that—even the dragonlings—that there was a papa dragon who wasn't pleased with having his face singed with a fire burp.

Or having his laptop eaten.

Or having his shoes used as a dragon potty.

But Seto would find that out later.

"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO MY SHOES?"

Okay, so maybe it was sooner rather than later.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note – I hope you guys liked this one!<strong>


	5. Western

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – Reiz has been <em>itching<em> for me to do this genre.

The fifth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…WESTERN!

* * *

><p><strong>Western (Rated T)<strong>

"I _hate_ field trips," Seto seethed through his teeth as he and the other students left the school bus.

Dust swarmed around their feet as they stared up at the foreboding sign that read _Frontier Town_. With their school deeming it educational for them to see what life was like on the frontier, their lovely educators had signed them up for a cowboy type camp.

Complete…with…costume…

"Remind me when we get back home to sue someone," Seto continued to rant.

Joey just rolled his eyes. "Would ya lighten up? It's gonna be fun. _Plus_, I get to see ya in chaps."

The brunet remained expressionless. "I hope they put you in a dress," he deadpanned.

"I'm a guy! They ain't gonna put me in a dress!"

* * *

><p>Seto growled as he fought with the stupid costume he was being forced to wear for the day. It consisted of a dark shirt with a black vest and chain, dark pants with a belt, black cowboy boots, a red bandana around his neck, a black cowboy hat, and a leather duster coat. It made him look like some kind of outlaw.<p>

"This is so great!" Duke cackled.

The brunet chanced a glance at them. "What are you morons laughing about now?"

Yugi's eyes immediately beamed. "They ran out of cowboy costumes!"

"And?"

"And," continued Yami, "a certain _someone_ is being forced into a saloon girl costume."

"…"

Yami's laughter died down as he only received a glare in response. Clearing his throat, he said, "It's Joey."

"Move," Seto said curtly, nearly throwing the former pharaoh out of his way so he could find his boyfriend. Stepping out of the building they'd been changing in, he went outside in search of the blond.

And found him throwing a tantrum in front of Tea.

But Seto's jaw only dropped as he took in the blond's appearance. He wore a blue dress with a crinoline and long sleeves; however, his shoulders and neck were completely exposed save for a choker around his neck. In addition to that, Joey wore black fishnet stockings, heels, and a garter around his right thigh.

"Seto! Look what they made me wear!" Joey cried once he noticed his boyfriend. "Seto? Ya better not be havin' any dirty thoughts, ya bastard!"

"Me? Dirty thoughts? Never," he replied with a smirk.

The blond promptly took off one of his heels and chucked it at Seto's head, but he merely ducked.

"Mr. Wheeler, please put your shoe back on. We have a lot to do today without you causing a showdown," quipped their teacher, Mrs. Rein.

Joey hobbled over to his discarded shoe and put it back on.

"And by the way," she continued, "you walk very well in heels. Have you done this before?"

The blond screamed while Mrs. Rein laughed quietly to herself and moved on. "All right, students. There are many things we'll be doing today. But one of the first things we'll need to do is determine a few roles. We'll need to select a sheriff and an outlaw."

Grumbling occurred amongst the students.

"And since I realize no one will jump at the opportunity, I've decided to have a little showdown of our own to determine those roles. Seto? Yami? Follow me."

The two just stared at her.

"I am _not_ participating in this," ground out the brunet.

"Yes, you will. Your grade is dependent on it. Now follow me so you can select your weapons."

"…weapons?" Yami echoed unsurely.

"Ooh! I want to be an outlaw!" Bakura shouted. Ryou glared him into silence.

By now, Mrs. Rein was losing her patience. "Follow me or I'll drag you myself!" she screeched.

Seto and Yami decided that humoring her was better than enduring any wrath she could bring upon them, so they followed her into what looked like a general store. There, on a counter, lay an array of guns.

"Select your weapon," she instructed. "You're going to have a duel. Whoever wins will be the sheriff and the loser will obviously be the outlaw."

"We're going to _shoot_ each other?" Yami asked, alarmed.

"Yes," Mrs. Rein answered matter-of-factly.

"Are you _insane_?"

"Not according to my doctor," she mumbled as she turned away before handing them each a gun. "You're taking too long. And besides, they're filled with blanks, not _real_ bullets."

"Oh," replied Yami, looking embarrassed.

"Now get out there and duel," Mrs. Rein insisted, shoving them out of the general store. "Go!"

The two stared at each other before walking out into the dusty path between the buildings, the other students hanging around them, watching.

"You need more distance between yourselves," instructed Mrs. Rein. "Once you do that, start shooting until someone loses."

"But…if they're filled with blanks, how do we determine a loser?" inquired Yami.

"Just do as I say!" she hissed.

Seto and Yami increased the distance between themselves until they were about thirty feet from each other. The brunet, with the gun at his side, just stared at his opponent as if he couldn't be bothered.

"Um…I guess I'll…shoot now?" started Yami, looking unsure.

"…"

The former pharaoh raised his gun, aimed it at the brunet, and fired.

A loud bang sounded in the area, causing everyone to flinch and cover their ears. Everyone except Seto. Yami faltered when the teen raised his gun at him and glared.

"You don't have to look so serious, Kaiba."

"I'm going to shoot you," the brunet deadpanned.

"They're filled with blanks. You can't really shoot me."

"Do you really believe that _my_ gun is filled with blanks?"

"Yes," Yami chuckled. The he sobered up when he noticed Seto glare even harder. "Right?" he squeaked.

"You'll see," he said, aiming for Yami's head.

"Fine! You win! I'll be the outlaw! Just don't shoot me!" the former pharaoh shouted as he dove behind a barrel.

Seto put the gun away and smirked. "Works every time."

* * *

><p>"All right," said Mrs. Rein inside the saloon. Her eyes panned over her students. "While Yami gets set up with his outlaw business, we're going to have a little fun. Wait, where are Bakura and Marik. Oh, well. We'll start without them."<p>

"Why do I get the feelin' that her definition of fun is the same as torture for us," mumbled Joey.

"Because she's a menace," quipped Seto.

"Come on. I think this is fun," stated Yugi.

"I want all the boys to get up on the stage. We're going to do a little song and dance number!"

"…I take that back," grumbled the smaller teen.

"What cowboys have you seen where they were singing and dancing together in a saloon?" argued Seto. He didn't want to do this crap anymore.

Mrs. Rein's eye twitched. "I happen to be a fan of the movie _Robin Hood: Men in Tights_. And the song that they sing I just so happen to enjoy. But instead of singing _Men in Tights_, you will be singing _Men in Chaps_ while doing the can-can. Questions?"

It was Seto's turn to start twitching. "If you make me do _any _of that, I will become an outlaw this very minute and burn this stupid ass town to the ground!"

"Fine. You may sit this one out," she said sweetly, turning a hardened glare to the rest of the group. "On the stage! Now!"

* * *

><p><em>We're men, we're men in chaps.<em>

_We roam around the desert looking for saps._

_We're men, we're men in chaps._

_We shoot at the ground and we shoot at the sky, mishaps!_

_We may look like sissies, but watch what you say, _

_Or else we'll tie your bootstraps!_

_We're men, we're men in chaps,_

_Always on guard defending the people's yaps._

_[Can-Can Number]_

_We're men (MANLY men), we're men in chaps. Yeah!_

_We roam around the desert looking for saps._

_We're men, we're men in chaps._

_We shoot at the ground and shoot at the sky, mishaps!_

_We may look like pansies, but don't get us wrong, _

_Or else we'll tie your bootstraps!_

_We're men, we're men in chaps (TIGHT chaps),_

_Always on guard defending the people's yaps._

_When you're in a fix, just call for the men in chaps!_

_We're butch!_

* * *

><p>Seto didn't know what to say after he witnessed <em>that<em> performance. He hesitated a glance over in Mrs. Rein's direction. "You _recorded_ them?"

The woman immediately hid something in her jacket. "No," she replied before looking back at her students. "That was very wonderful!"

_Bang!_

Everyone jumped when the saloon doors were kicked open, revealing Bakura. But the former thief didn't realize that the doors could move back, so they knocked him back out of the doorway. A little more scuffling later, Bakura reemerged with Marik at his side with Yami tied up and gagged.

"What're you doing, Bakura?" Ryou asked with an exasperated sigh.

"We're outlaws," announced Marik.

"Yes. And this town isn't big enough for the two of us," added Bakura with a grin.

"…"

"…does anyone else hear the cricket?" asked Joey.

"Bakura, that doesn't even make any sense," said Ryou, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Huh? What doesn't?"

"You said that this town isn't big enough for the two of us. There are more than two people present."

"…shut up! You know what I mean!" Bakura roared. "And I'm an outlaw, so anything I say goes!"

"Do somethin'," said Joey, looking over at Seto. "You're the sheriff."

"So."

The blond glared at him before taking off his shoe—again—and throwing it at Bakura, nailing him in the head.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?"

"Someone's gotta stop ya."

"By hitting me in the head? Ow! Stop throwing shoes at me! No! Put down the damn chair!" screamed Bakura as he ran from Joey, chair in his hands.

Groaning, Seto took out the gun he'd been given and fired it. The loud bang startled Joey so much, he accidently hit Bakura with the chair. After it broke, all hell broke loose.

"Let's get outta here," the blond said hurriedly, taking Seto's arm and dragging him out of the saloon as your typical bar fight began.

"Only _you_ would be able to do that."

"It was an accident!" Joey insisted heatedly, his face reddening in anger.

Seto just smirked. "Have I told you how sexy you look right now?"

"I'm not in the mood for your stupid pick-up lines. Wah!" he cried as the brunet threw him over his shoulder. "What the hell are ya doin'?"

"I figured everyone else would be occupied for awhile, so we're going off into the sunset."

"But it's only noon!"

"I guess we'll just have to do something until sunset then," replied Seto, trailing his hand up Joey's fishnet clad leg.

The blond squealed and kicked. "This ain't how it happens in the movies!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note – I hope you're happy, Reiz.<strong>


	6. Friendship

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – What a way to end a fic.<p>

The sixth and final genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…FRIENDSHIP!

* * *

><p><strong>Friendship (Rated T)<strong>

"It's about time ya got here," Joey snapped as he glared up at Seto from his spot on the grass. "I've been bitten about fifty times by fuckin' mosquitoes."

"Haven't you ever heard of insectrepellent?" the brunet responded as he sat next to him.

"Yeah. But if I used it, ya wouldn't come, now, would ya?"

"Touché."

"Why do we gotta do this out in the woods, anyway?"

"I would hardly call the park the woods, Joey."

The blond resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "I just don't understand why we gotta hide this."

Seto shrugged. "It keeps people from talking."

"People are gonna talk regardless of what ya do," commented Joey as he lay back on the grass and stared up at the starry sky. Seto followed suit.

"And your friends? What would they say?"

Sighing, the blond blinked, his gaze trying to focus on the constellations. "I don't know. They might think I'm bein' brainwashed or somethin'. Hell, Tristan would probably think ya replaced me with a pod person."

It was Seto's turn to sigh. "Your friends scare me sometimes."

"Why?"

"Because they're stupid."

"When ya call my friends stupid, it's like you're callin' _me_ stupid!"

"Your point?"

Joey grabbed a clump of dirt and grass and threw it at the brunet's face. As the earthen residue slid down Seto's cheek, his eyes hardened as he sat up. "You're going to pay for that."

"Ack! Don't ya dare!" the blond screeched, making a run for it when the brunet started throwing dirt at him. But his quick steps did him no favors when he slipped on some mud, falling face first into the ground.

Seto stopped beside him, brushing his hands off by rubbing them together. "Are you finished being a nuisance?"

Raising his head, Joey spit dirt out of his mouth while wiping his face off with his sleeve. "_You_ started it."

"You're the one who started throwing dirt at me. But I never thought you'd be able to take yourself out, too."

"Shut up, ya jerk," he replied, pushing past Seto as he headed for a park bench. Sitting down, he looked back up at the stars.

As he sat next to him, the brunet inhaled deeply…then paused, a frown marring his features. He made to speak a few more times, but couldn't bring himself to speak.

"Is somethin' wrong?" Joey asked, eying Seto hesitantly.

"Yes…no…maybe. I don't know."

"Ya said we could talk to each other about anythin', so spill."

"…it's the last day of summer."

"Yeah. So?"

"We start school tomorrow."

"Since when did ya become Captain Obvious?"

"If you would shut up and stop interrupting, maybe I could get to the point!" the brunet snapped. When Joey held up his hands defensively, he continued. "I don't think I can go back to how we were before."

The blond nodded in understanding. "Enemies."

"Yes. I never expected to become…_friends_ with you this summer. And I definitely never expected to…enjoy your company."

"Same here, rich boy. So what do we do now?" Joey asked, kicking his feet. He poked at the dirt with the tip of his shoe.

"We can't go back," started Seto.

"But you're not sure ya wanna go forward."

"I never said that."

"I know…but that's how ya feel, right?"

"How would _you_ know?"

"Because I feel the same."

They both sighed and looked back up at the night sky, only to see a shooting star. "Make a wish," whispered Seto as he watched the star fade into nothing.

"I already did."

"What did you wish for?"

"If I tell ya, it won't come true."

"I thought that only happened with birthday wishes."

"Nope!" Joey said with a grin. "So…what're we gonna do about school? Are we gonna pretend to be enemies…or really be friends?"

Seto stared ahead of him, thinking before he voiced his decision aloud. "Friends. I want to stay friends."

The blond burst out laughing at that.

"What the hell is so funny?"

"It looks like I got my wish."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note – And we're done! I really wanted this to be short and sweet. Did you like it?<strong>


	7. Spiritual

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – We are continuing with the genre challenge.<p>

The seventh genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…SPIRITUAL!

* * *

><p><strong>Spiritual (Rated T)<strong>

"Come on, where are ya?" Joey muttered under his breath as he crossed the vacant schoolyard. Soon enough, however, he spotted a familiar form sitting underneath the large oak tree that rested on a hill near the side of the school. Steeling himself, the blond wandered over to Kaiba, hands in his pockets as he observed the brunet's livid expression.

Kaiba, noticing that he'd been found, inwardly groaned as he tried to focus his attention on anything else other than Joey. But he knew that would be far from possible.

"Are ya okay?" Joey asked as he rocked on his heels.

"No."

The blond sighed and sat down next to Kaiba, settling on the grass with a soft thump. "Wanna talk about it?"

"No."

Joey sighed again. "Ya should."

"And why should I?" Kaiba snapped.

"Because I think that's the first time I've ever seen ya get so worked up over somethin'."

The brunet leaned against the oak tree, letting his head rest on the scraggly trunk. "That's because people are idiots."

"Just because they don't think the same way you do?"

"When it comes to religion, yes. People are idiots."

Joey paused, thinking before he asked his next question. "So ya really don't believe in God?"

"No."

"…how come?"

"I don't believe there is some all powerful creator who rules the universe and is the source of all moral authority. And even such a being did exist, I would say him or her or whatever is a total asshole."

"That's kinda harsh, isn't it?"

"Raping a ten-year-old is harsh. A mother murdering her young children is harsh. Apparently everything happens for a reason. Why would a god let that happen?"

"That has to do with free will, right?"

"If we were given free will by an all powerful being, then why do people say that God doesn't give you anything you can't handle? So God sends out people to murder and rape and harm people? If he does, then free will doesn't really exist since God sends people out there to test you."

"…"

"No one has a fair or equal life, Joey. How can anyone be judged equally if no one goes through the same thing?"

"I don't know," Joey answered quietly. "But people do pray and stuff. Good things come out of it."

"Are you sure about that?" questioned Kaiba. "Let's just say, for example, your sister needed a heart transplant. Would you pray for her to get a new heart?"

"Of course I would."

"So you're praying for someone else to die?"

"What?"

"In order for your sister to get a new heart, someone else would have to die. Therefore, you're actually praying someone will die so that your sister can live."

"I…never thought of it that way," Joey replied softly.

Kaiba sighed, casting his gaze up to the sky. "Religion causes a multitude of problems. I'm not saying that people shouldn't believe in something. If they think having faith in something like that helps them, then by all means, do so. I just don't appreciate the fact that so many people preach that their way is the only true way."

"Do ya believe in anythin'?"

"I believe in science, reason, and logic," stated Kaiba firmly. "And I believe in myself and the people who are close to me. I think most people put faith in some supernatural entity because they don't have enough faith to put into themselves."

"I guess I can understand that. So what does that make ya?"

"Spiritual, I suppose. I feel the connection between myself, the world, and the people who reside within it. I see the amazement in everything in the world. How we're able to communicate with people all over the world through use of the internet, how we're able to experience sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste, how something like a seed can grow into something as monstrous as a tree. How anyone can not take these things in and view them as great achievements astounds me. There is so much on this world. How can anyone be bored with it?"

Joey leaned back against the tree and just stared at Kaiba. This was probably the most he'd ever hear him talk. "The world is amazin'. Even the people who are in it," he said with a smile.

"Don't get sappy on me."

"Okay. Ya wanna just sit here for a bit then?"

"Yes."

Smiling once more, Joey scooted a tad bit closer to Kaiba as he looked up at the sky with him. They did live in an amazing world, but it took Kaiba to show him just how amazing. But it also took Kaiba to make him think a bit more about life and everything that went on in it. He supposed everyone was spiritual to some degree; everyone just had a different way of expressing it.

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	8. Hurt, Comfort

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – Yes, the interpretation is literal.<p>

The eighth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…HURT/COMFORT!

* * *

><p><strong>HurtComfort (Rated T)**

"This isn't my fault," Joey stated immediately as he eyed Seto up and down.

The brunet grit his teeth, seething as his ankle pounded. "Of course it's your fault! If you hadn't hit me with that damn water balloon, forcing me to chase you, this wouldn't have happened!"

Joey glared. "Well, if ya hadn't insulted me, which made me throw the water balloon at ya, which then made ya chase me, ya wouldn't have fallen in a squirrel hole!"

"…a what?" Seto deadpanned. He glanced down at the hole his foot was currently stuck in.

"A squirrel hole. Your foot's stuck in one."

The brunet continued to stare, the pain in his ankle continuing to rivet through him. And that's when he felt it. Something was tugging on his shoe.

"Help me! Get me out of this!" Seto shouted as he began to struggle.

"Stop strug—"

"I will not be eaten by squirrels!"

"They're not gonna eat ya. They might have rabies, but—"

"Wrong! I know for a fact that there are some rats that will eat the soles of your feet if you don't take the proper precautions! Fuck!"

Joey sighed. "What now?"

"I think it's chewing through my shoe!"

"It's not—"

"Yes it is! I can feel its head! It's touching me!"

The blond stepped over to the brunet and said, "Hold still."

"Just shut up and help me!"

"I can't if ya keep strugglin'! It's just gonna put ya in more pain and it'll piss the squirrel off even more!"

At that, Seto stilled. "Just hurry up," he ground out.

Joey crouched next to the brunet, hovering a bit over his leg. Seto's foot was definitely stuck in a hole. Up to his ankle, at least. And it looked like his ankle was already starting to swell.

"Hurry," Seto hissed.

"I got it. Don't worry," mumbled the blond. He gingerly reached for the brunet's ankle and pulled.

"Careful! That hurts!"

"Shut up or I'm gonna let the damn squirrels eat ya!" Joey snapped back. When he saw Seto clench his jaw, he turned back and continued pulling out the brunet's foot from the whole. "Aw, crap," he said when Seto's foot was finally free.

"What?" the brunet questioned immediately.

"Um…don't…just don't move, okay?"

"What? Why?"

"Just…don't move!" the blond insisted as he semi-straddled Seto's waist so that he couldn't see his legs.

"Tell me," ground out the brunet.

"Well, the squirrel did chew your shoe. Through it, actually. And…I guess ya can feel it, huh?"

That's when Seto noticed it. Taking a deep breath, he said, "Its head is in my shoe…isn't it?"

"Yeah…"

"Get it out. Get it out now," Seto stated, panic rising in his voice.

"I-I'll try, but ya gotta keep still." _How the hell am I gonna get a fuckin' squirrel out of his shoe?_

Joey reached out to touch the squirrel, but as soon as his fingers met fur, the squirrel started struggling.

"Fuck! Just yank it out or something!" shouted Seto.

"Don't struggle!"

"You keep saying that and have yet to get rid of that fucking squirrel! Do something!"

"Uh—okay! Uh, good squirrel. That's a good boy," started Joey as he began petting the squirrel.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm tryin' to comfort it, asshole! You're hurt and it's wild and crazy. If I calm it down, maybe I can get it out without the damn thing bitin' ya."

"Just hurry the fuck up," groaned Seto. He couldn't take much more of this.

Joey continued to coo as he pet the squirrel. Gradually, it began to relax. And when it did, he grabbed its tail and yanked it out.

"_Tackatackatacka!_" the squirrel screeched as it ran off.

The blond collapsed backward onto the ground. "Happy now?"

"Not really, but I'll live," replied Seto as he positioned himself in the same manner. But their moment of relaxation was short-lived.

"_Tackatackatacka!_"

"Aw, shit!" cried Joey as he scrambled to his feet, pulling Seto to his own in the process. "It called in reinforcements!"

"You've got to be kidding me!" shouted Seto as he eyed the army of squirrels that now raced toward them. "Don't you dare leave me, Mutt!"

"If ya stop callin' me a mutt, I won't let ya hobble for your life!"

"Deal!"

"_Tackatackatacka!_"

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	9. Humor

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – We're in the United States for this one.<p>

**DO NOT DO ANYTHING WRITTEN IN THIS FIC! IT IS DANGEROUS!**

The ninth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…HUMOR!

* * *

><p><strong>Humor (Rated T)<strong>

"Hell no. We are not having a celebration of _any _kind at my mansion!" Seto hissed through his teeth as he eyed the unexpected guests in his foyer. An Independence Day celebration with the geek squad and their evil counterparts? No way in hell.

Joey groaned in aggravation. "Come on. It'll be fine."

"No."

"It's not like anythin' bad is gonna happen."

"Do you really believe that?"

Joey paused. "…no. But I got 9-1-1 on speed dial."

"You have—never mind. The answer is still no."

"But everyone's already here!" the blond whined as he bounced up and down. "I'll keep a close eye on everyone."

"Fine. But if someone dies, it's on your head," Seto stated as he walked away.

"That was easier than I thought."

* * *

><p>He shouldn't have agreed to this. Why the hell did he agree to this?<p>

"What the fuck are you three doing?" Seto deadpanned as he spotted Yami, Bakura, and Marik hovering over the barbeque grill.

"We're going to make a fire!" Marik responded happily.

Yami cleared his throat. "Actually, we're going to try our hand at barbequing."

"With fire?" Seto replied.

Yami hesitated. "You can do it without?" he asked, eyeing the barbeque grill suspiciously.

Seto pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's not what I meant. I mean—oh, forget it. Try not to burn the vicinity down," he muttered as he wandered away. He didn't wander too far, though, just in case he had to—you know—put out a fire.

He watched as Bakura dumped a pile of coals in the center of the grill, then he took a step back when he saw Marik dowse the pile in charcoal lighter. Lots and lots of charcoal lighter. This wasn't going to end well. He could tell.

Next Yami took a lighter and set fire to the coal. It lit up, as well as his hand.

"Hot!" Yami yelled as he danced around the grill as if he were performing some sort of tribal dance.

"Idiot," Seto mumbled under his breath.

Suddenly, the flame on the coals went out. Yami, Bakura, and Marik all leaned over the barbeque grill, confused as to why the fire had disappeared. And then Marik did something he would never forget.

Seto stared wide-eyed when Marik squeezed more charcoal lighter of the seemingly dead coals, only to have the center erupt like a volcano, singing the three unsuspecting victims.

"Crap!"

"Fuck that's hot!"

"My eyebrows are gone!"

"What? Mine too!"

"My hair! My beautiful hair!"

"Idiots," Seto muttered as he walked off.

* * *

><p>"Guys, don't!" Joey pleaded.<p>

"What the hell is going on now?" Seto snapped.

The blond jumped nearly ten feet in the air. "Seto! Uh—"

"We're going to light him up!" crowed Bakura.

"…excuse me?" stated Seto. His eyes quickly panned the area until they landed on Yami, who was fast asleep on a lawn chair. And were those…sparklers in his hair? It made him look like the Statue of Liberty or something.

"You're going to light the sparklers?" questioned Seto.

Bakura and Marik nodded vigorously.

"Go ahead."

"What?" Joey screeched.

"Shh! Do you want to wake him up?" growled Bakura. "Come on. Let's go."

Joey watched in shock while Seto appeared quite eager as Marik and Bakura approached Yami. Taking a lighter, they lit each of the sparklers.

As soon as the snap, crackle, and pop began, Yami woke. He shot up in his chair in shock, at first, until he realized the loud noises were coming from his hair.

"I'm on fire! Help!" he screamed at the top of his lungs.

Suddenly, a whir of something whizzed past Seto. When he realized it was Joey with a fire extinguisher, he was a bit displeased that Yami's tantrum would be short-lived. However, seeing Yami blasted by a fire extinguisher was well worth the initial displeasure.

* * *

><p>"What the hell is going on out there?" Seto inquired when he spotted Joey rooted to his spot in the doorway that led to the front yard. The sun had finally set, which only meant the fireworks would be set off shortly.<p>

"Tryin' not to get killed," responded the blond, looking petrified.

Seto peered over Joey's shoulder and immediately whipped out his cell as soon as he saw what was about to take place. He dialed 9-1-1 just as Bakura lit a piece of rolled-up newspaper and tossed it into a box of fireworks.

"Where's everyone else?" Seto asked quickly as he waited for someone to respond to his call.

"They…kinda ran off down the street as soon as they saw the fireworks," Joey replied quietly.

"SHUT THE DOOR! SHUT THE DOOR!" Seto cried as a firework came hurling at them. He slammed the door shut and knocked Joey to the ground, covering him. Booms, screeches, and screams were the only things that could be heard from the outside.

"This was such a bad idea!" whimpered Joey.

"You just realized this now?" seethed the brunet.

"Hey! Ya said it was okay!"

"I didn't say it was okay to blow up the city!"

"They're not gonna blow up the city!"

_BOOM!_

"The mansion just shook! It _shook_, Joey!"

"Okay. So maybe they might blow up the city."

"If I get killed by a firework, I'm going to murder you."

"Seto, if you're dead, how can ya kill me."

"…shut up."

"You said it, not me."

"Being around you makes me stupid."

"Obviously. Who let those guys get fireworks?"

"_You_ did."

"…oh. Well, why didn't ya stop me?"

_BOOM! BOOM! _

"As I said before, being around you makes me stupid."

"Stupidly in love?"

"Don't even think about kissing me now with fireworks going on. That's just too cliché."

"Well, screw you then."

"Maybe later, but definitely the other way around. Right now, I'd rather just survive the night."

_BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!_

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	10. Family

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The tenth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…FAMILY!<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Family (Rated M…ish)<strong>

Seto grinned maliciously when he drew his Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Turning his gaze toward Joey and his Red-Eyes Black Dragon on the field, his grin nearly tripled in size. It was the blond's own fault he was going to lose this duel. Too bad no one else was here to witness Joey's humiliation.

"Just play your stupid card already!" the blond snapped. He didn't like the look on Seto's face. It just reeked of power and total domination. _I bet he drew his Blue-Eyes_, he thought to himself.

Seto sacrificed two monsters on his side of the field, a giant white dragon taking their place.

"Fuck," Joey muttered.

"What was that?" Seto asked with a smirk on his face.

"Just…get it over with," the blond said, resigned.

Seto couldn't wait for his Blue-Eyes to attack. It would definitely show Joey who was the better duelist. But something was off. "Blue-Eyes?" he whispered. If he didn't know any better, he'd have said that his dragon was looking at Joey's Red-Eyes and…panting? That couldn't be right.

"Are ya gonna attack me or what?"

"I…" Seto couldn't really manage words at the moment. His body suddenly felt flush, almost as if he was on fire. A jolt of something unfamiliar coursed through his body…right down to his—

"Kaiba!"

The brunet clenched his jaw. "What?"

"Are ya gonna attack already?"

"No!" he ground out.

"Why the hell not?"

Suddenly, Seto's Blue-Eyes let out a strange roar, which only seemed to alert Joey's Red-Eyes. Rearing its black head, Red-Eyes let out a similar roar.

Taking a deep breath, Seto swallowed loudly. "Whatever. Blue-Eyes, attack Red-Eyes!"

Nothing happened.

"I said attack Red-Eyes," repeated Seto.

Still nothing happened. Why was Blue-Eyes refusing to attack?

"Fuck!" Seto shouted when a wave of arousal hit his groin. What the fuck was going on? Why was he aroused?

"Kaiba?" Joey asked timidly. "Are ya okay?"

Seto ripped off his duel disk and threw it on the ground, collapsing to his knees in the process. Why was his body betraying him like this?

Concerned, Joey took off his own duel disk and ran to the brunet's side. "Kaiba?"

As soon as the blond's hand touched his shoulder, Seto nearly recoiled from the touch. But he didn't…because it just felt too damn good. It made him want more. He wanted more touching, more skin—bare skin—Joey's skin. He needed him. Needed him beneath him. He needed to dominate him, copulate with him, make babies with—

Seto's mind came to a screeching halt. "Go away! Don't touch me!"

"Kaiba—"

"Go away!" Seto insisted, trying to shove the blond away.

"What the hell is wrong with ya?"

Seto grabbed Joey by the shoulders and slammed him into a nearby tree, but he didn't let go. He was too busy leaning toward him. "Leave."

"I can't if ya don't let me go," Joey squeaked, unnerved by the brunet's weird behavior. He squeaked even more when he felt something hard press against his thigh. "Kai…ba?"

"If you don't leave right this instant," Seto ground out, his restraint leaving him, "I will be forced to have coitus with you."

Joey didn't know what the hell that meant, but he wasn't about to stay and find out. He took off as if there was a pack of wolves on his heels.

When the blond was gone, Seto rested his forehead against the trunk of the tree. What the hell was wrong with him? He'd never had any sexual feelings for the blond before…had he? But it felt more than sexual. It felt…primal. But he couldn't figure out why or how he knew that that's what it meant.

And those feelings hadn't started until he'd summoned his Blue-Eyes to the field. Furthermore, his Blue-Eyes hadn't even tried to attack Joey's Red-Eyes when he'd told it to do so. It was as if their dragons had had a mind of their own. But it didn't seem like Joey had noticed anything. Or felt anything.

A familiar jolt went through his body again. Just thinking about the blond was making him aroused. Why was this happening?

* * *

><p>"Coitus, coitus, coitus," Joey mumbled aloud as he poured over the dictionary. "Ha! Found it! Okay, so coitus means…SEXUAL INTERCOURSE?"<p>

"Shh!" shushed the librarian, who looked at him strangely, as well as the sparse amount of people in the library.

Joey paled slightly before shutting the dictionary and bolting out of said library. He needed to get to Yugi's. He couldn't handle this revelation on his own. Seto Kaiba wanted to have sex with him!

* * *

><p>Seto took a deep breath before starting his car and pulling out of the school parking lot. He needed to get home and take a shower. Perhaps that would drive the blond from his mind.<p>

And maybe a little music. His hand fumbled around until he turned on his radio.

"_His heart's beating like a drum 'cos at last he's got this girl home/ Relax baby, now we are alone—_"

Click!

"_Gonna wrap my arms around you, hold you close to me/ Oh, babe, I wanna taste your lips, I wanna fill your fantasy—_"

Click!

"_Do that to me one more time/ Once is never enough with a man like you_—"

Click!

"_Throw your clothes, on the floor/ I'm gonna take my clothes off too/ I made plans to be with you_—"

Click!

"_You'd be a fool to stop this tide/ Spread your wings and let me come inside_—"

"No music then," Seto said in a strained voice as he shut it off, the arousal hitting him again. If this kept up, he was going to crash the car.

Suddenly, something caught his attention. A familiar blond was heading into the Game Shop. He knew he should just keep on driving, but he just couldn't.

* * *

><p>"Yugi!" Joey cried when he entered the Game Shop. "I need help! I need it bad!"<p>

Yami and Yugi turned their attention to the frantic blond. He looked completely disheveled and scared.

"What's wrong, Joey?" Yugi asked.

"Kaiba's gone crazy!"

"What else is new?" commented Yami.

"Ya don't understand!" Joey continued to rant, shaking Yami by the shoulders. "He wants to have sex with me!"

"Are you sure you weren't dreaming, Joey? Because you do have strange dreams sometimes," said Yugi.

"It's true! It really happened! One minute, we were duelin' and the next and he was talkin' about coitus!"

"That does sound like a word Kaiba would use, Yugi. Perhaps it did happen."

"But why would Kaiba suddenly…jump Joey?"

"Yeah! Why?" added Joey. "Ya think he'd prefer to attack me with his stupid dragon than jump me!"

"Wait," started Yami. "Was his Blue-Eyes on the field?"

Joey paused. "Yeah."

"And was your Red-Eyes on the field?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, well it all makes sense now," Yami stated, turning his attention to one of the card display cases.

When the former pharaoh failed to elaborate, Yugi gave him a little push. A literal one.

"Yugi!" Yami hissed from his spot on the floor. "What was that for?"

"Can you explain what makes so much sense?" he asked.

Yami looked between his two friends before jumping into an explanation. "It's mating season," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Excuse me?" Joey and Yugi deadpanned.

"It's dragon mating season. Blue-Eyes and Red-Eyes are known mates and you and Kaiba are probably feeling the effects of that."

"Are ya serious? What the hell do I do?" Joey yelled.

"You could come with me," said a voice from behind him.

The blond shrieked and spun around. "Kaiba, what the hell?"

"You're coming with me whether you want to or not," Seto insisted.

"Like hell I am!" Joey snapped in response.

The brunet grabbed him by his collar and yanked him toward his body. "I don't know why the hell I'm feeling this way, but every cell in my body is screaming for you. We will go to my place, enter my bedroom, strip down to nothing, and we will perform coitus until this incessant feeling has passed."

Joey gulped. Especially when his body started to respond to the brunet's words. _Traitor!_ he hissed to his own body. "Yami?"

"Uh…yes, Joey?"

Joey gulped again. "How long is matin' season for dragons?"

"I don't know. Anywhere from a few weeks to a few months maybe?"

Joey gulped a third time.

"Sounds like fun," said Seto casually, his hands releasing the blond's collar. They trailed down his backside until they met his bottom. With a slight squeeze, he sent the blond yelping. "Very fun, indeed."

"I got an idea!" Joey said hurriedly. "How about we just avoid each other until our dragons are normal, okay? Sound like a plan? Good. Bye!"

"Not so fast," interceded the brunet, yanking Joey toward him. "We will have coitus."

"Hey! I'm not just gonna let ya use me and let that be the end of it!"

"I think you're forgetting something."

"Huh?"

"Dragons mate for life. So after we have coitus—"

"Will ya stop usin' that word?"

"Fine. After we have hot, steamy, and passionate sex, we will be together."

"Like…together together? As in a couple?" Joey asked.

"Yes. Much like the start of a family."

"I think I can live with that," the blond replied with a smile that matched Seto's own. The brunet took his hand and they both left the Game Shop.

Yugi sighed, "Well, that was—"

"Wait!" shouted Joey as he burst into the Game Shop once more. "This doesn't mean I can get pregnant, right?"

"No, Joey. You won't get…pregnant," replied Yami.

Joey put a hand to his chest and sighed in relief. "Okay. Good."

"Joey! Coitus! Now!"

"Would ya quit it with that word? It makes ya sound like a creeper!"

"If you hurry up, I'll stop saying it and start doing it!"

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	11. Poetry

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The eleventh genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…POETRY!<p>

This poem is modeled after a particular style. Cookies to anyone who can guess whose style it is. And this poem in written in Seto's POV.

Fanfic also won't let me divide this into stanzas, so just bear with the horizontal lines.

* * *

><p><strong>Poetry (Rated T)<strong>

Once upon an evening grim, while I brooded, slight and slim,

Over many an odd and peculiar throng of forsaken debris,

While I drifted, deftly distant, suddenly there came an instant,

As of someone vaguely rampant, rampant on my bleak settee.

"It's some rat," I grumbled, "latent on my bleak settee-

Only this, and nothing eerie."

* * *

><p>Ah, and clearly I recall it was in the drabbest fall,<p>

And each divided fading squall formed its phantom onto me.

Fervently I hoped that next;- uselessly I wanted text

From my hand devoid of hexed- hexed for the lost Joey-

For the bright and brilliant man whom the seraphs name Joey-

Nameless _here _for eternity.

* * *

><p>And the glossy, glum, unclear whispering from some azure sphere<p>

Whirred me- stirred me with superb horrors never sensed amply;

So that now, to blur the blazing of my heart, I sat wheezing,

"It's some rat squeezing somewhere on my bleak settee-

Some meek rat squeezing somewhere on my bleak settee;-

That is it, and nothing eerie."

* * *

><p>Currently my heart beat faster; fleeing quickly from its master,<p>

"Rat," I said, "or rodent, quiet, foul and sickened beastie;

How dare you interrupt my distant, all my drifting in an instant,

And so vaguely you are rampant, rampant on my bleak settee,

That I was scant to hear of you"- here I crept toward the settee;-

Dimness there, and nothing eerie.

* * *

><p>Far into that dimness staring, long I rested there doubting, waiting,<p>

Suspecting, screaming screams no man ever sought to scream audibly;

But the quiet was still endless, and the silence was still boundless,

And the only sound there said was the murmured word, "Joey?"

This I murmured, and someone whispered back the word, "Joey!"-

Only this, and nothing eerie.

* * *

><p>Back toward the settee gazing, all my soul within me blazing,<p>

Soon again I heard something rampant somewhat quick and rapidly.

"Surely," I said, "surely that is something outside my window:

Let's see, then, what it is now, and end this thriller thoroughly-

Let my heart cease rapid beating and end this thriller thoroughly;-

It's the wind and nothing eerie!"

* * *

><p>Here I opened up the window, when, with a great gust and billow,<p>

In here came a splendid Dragon of the sordid kind of story;

Not even a greeting did he make; he did not pause or wait;

But, with bearing of man or woman, rested on my bleak settee-

Rested upon a velvet cushion on my bleak settee-

Rested, and sat, and nothing eerie.

* * *

><p>Then this pearly reptile captivating my cheerless want into grinning,<p>

By the firm and solemn restraint of the expression mockingly.

"Though your emblem is fair and just," I said, "you are filled with jargon,

Errant evil and primordial Dragon roving from the Ghoulish alley-

Tell me what your name is on the Ghoul's Otherworldly alley!"

Said the Dragon, "Verily."

* * *

><p>I wondered much how this gangly lizard could know my words so clearly,<p>

Though his answer had slight value- slight importance any;

For we cannot avoid in approving that no such living thing

Was ever yet exalted with perceiving reptile on my bleak settee-

Reptile or lizard on the velvet cushion on my bleak settee,

With such a name as "Verily."

* * *

><p>But the Dragon, resting idly on the velvet cushion, spoke cockily<p>

That single word, as if his spirit in that single word he did bleakly

Nothing more that he voiced- not a wing that he waved-

Until I barely more than uttered, "Others of you have gone aptly-

On the eve _he _will leave me, as my desire has gone aptly."

Then the reptile said, "Verily."

* * *

><p>Troubled at the tranquil crack by retort so rightly back,<p>

"No doubt," I said, "what he voices is his only stake and ante,

Fixed from some forlorn man whom callous Ban

Pursued promptly and pursued prompter until his cries lone drained away-

Until the laments of his Faith that despondent drained away

Of 'Very- verily'."

* * *

><p>But the Dragon still captivating all my cheerless want into grinning,<p>

Directly I veered a padded chair before the reptile, cushion and settee;

Then upon the padding dipping, I took myself to connecting

Notions unto notions, supposing what this sordid reptile of story-

What this foul, disgusting, filthy, low and sordid reptile of story

Meant in growling "Verily."

* * *

><p>This I met occupied in deducing, but no syllable conveying<p>

To the lizard whose icy eyes now bore into my rigid body;

This and more I sat presuming, with my head lessened resting

On the cushion's velvet coating that the candlelight drifted blithely,

But whose velvet ruby coating with the candlelight drifting blithely,

_He_ shall press, ah, verily!

* * *

><p>Then I thought the space grew thicker, fragrant from a hidden canker<p>

Swayed by Angels whose steps chimed on the clumped alley,

"Bastard," I howled, "your kind has loaned you- by these seraphs they have sent you

Break- break and forget, from my memories of Joey!

Go, oh go with this forgetfulness and forget this lost Joey!"

Said the Dragon, "Verily."

* * *

><p>"Mystic!" I said, "object of vice! – mystic still, if reptile or lyse! -<p>

Whether Coaxer hurled, or whether charmer pitched you here with me,

Barren yet all carefree, on this abandoned earth bleakly-

On this house by Dismay distasted- tell me justly, I beg modestly-

Is there- _is _there peace there?- tell me- tell me, I beg modestly!"

Said the Dragon, "Verily."

* * *

><p>"Mystic!" I said, "object of vice! – mystic still, if reptile or lyse! -<p>

By that Bliss that curves over us- by that kind we both carry-

Tell this spirit with mourning loaded if, within the seclusion boarded,

It will grasp a blessed man whom the seraphs name Joey-

Grasp a bright and brilliant man whom the seraphs name Joey."

Said the Dragon, "Verily."

* * *

><p>"Be that sound our mark in leaving, reptile or beast," I yelled unknowing-<p>

"Get yourself back into the storm and the Ghoul's Otherworldly alley!

Leave no white scales as a hold of that untruth your spirit has told!

Leave my solitude complete!- renounce the cushion on my settee!

Take your talons from out my heart, and take your figure from my settee!"

Said the Dragon, "Verily."

* * *

><p>And the Dragon, never darting, still is resting, <em>still <em>is resting

On the ruby cushion of Velvet just on top my bleak settee;

And his eyes have all the appearing of a fiend's that is revering,

And the candlelight over him flowing casts his gloom on the settee;

And my spirit from out that gloom that rests hanging on the settee

Shall be lifted- verily!

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	12. Mystery

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The twelfth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…MYSTERY!<p>

I kind of cheated with this one, so this fic may sound familiar to some of you. But since I never finished it and was only about halfway through, I decided to use this challenge as an incentive to finish this fic, which hadn't been worked on for well over a year.

So just kick back and enjoy. I know you'll like it, even if it is a bit long.

* * *

><p><strong>Mystery (Rated M)<strong>

"Hey!" Serenity cried, racing over to Mokuba, who was currently standing in front of a new game store that had opened; it was sponsored by Kaiba Corp.

"Hi! I'm glad you could make it!" Mokuba replied excitedly.

"Me too. It took forever for me to get big brother to let me go," she said once she'd approached him. Since summer started, her mother had kicked her out, not wanting to have anything to do with her since the young girl wanted Joey to be a part of her life. On that fateful day, Serenity had come knocking on the door to her brother's apartment, and she'd been welcomed with loving yet overly protective arms.

"Then let's check this place out. Big brother said it's supposed to have a whole new wave of cards," Mokuba said, taking her hand and nearly dragging her into the shop.

They giggled as they entered, immediately going toward a display that held a bunch of new cards. As they looked through them, Serenity suddenly squealed in delight.

"Look at this!" she cried, showing the young boy the card she held. "This would be perfect for big brother!"

"That's awesome!" said Mokuba, looking at the Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon appreciatively. His eyes panned the display once more and settled on something that nearly made him burst into tears…from laughter. "They made one of big brother!" he cackled, showing Serenity the Kaibaman card.

Once their chuckling had ceased, they picked up the cards that reminded them of their brothers and purchased them. They were eager to have a card that represented their love for their brothers in their decks.

"Big brother's going to be so happy!" Serenity sighed, clutching the card as they left the shop.

Mokuba nodded in compliance. "Well, I guess we should get home now. I'll see you tomorrow at school, okay?"

"Okay!"

They said their goodbyes and made their way home, each heading in the opposite direction of the other. However, they didn't notice the two pairs of eyes watching them.

"What do you think?" whispered one voice from the shadows.

There was a moment's pause. "I'm not sure."

"Which is the right one?" the first voice said, exasperated. "It's not like they called each other by name. And _both_ of them said big brother. Which one of them is it?"

"Hm…it seems like they're good friends, aren't they?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"If these two are such good friends, then their brothers must be very good friends as well."

"Oh, I see now," the first voice cackled. "That _would _be quite fun."

"Indeed," the second voice said in agreement. "It seems like we have a change of plans then. We take them both."

* * *

><p>Serenity bounded into the apartment, enthusiastic about giving Joey her gift.<p>

"You're late," came her brother's voice from the kitchen. He stepped out with a dishtowel draped over his shoulder. Crossing his arms, he looked at her. "Ya know tomorrow's the first day of school."

"I know and I'm sorry, but I was out doing something important."

"More important than bein' on time for dinner?"

The young girl nodded and ran up to her brother. She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. "Thank you for letting me stay with you, big brother," she whispered.

Joey's heart melted. "You're my baby sister. I'd never let anythin' happen to ya," he said, hugging her back gently. "You stayin' here has been the best thing that's happened to me in a long time."

Serenity pulled away and looked up at him, a smile on her face. "I got you something."

"Huh?"

"It's a bit of a thank you gift for always being there for me. And with this…it's like I'll always be there for you," she explained, handing him the small bag she held in her hand.

The blond took it hesitantly before peeking inside. When he pulled out the card, he grinned. "Serenity, I love it! I'll put it in my deck right now!"

"I knew you'd like it!" Serenity exclaimed as she hugged him again. This had to be the happiest moment of her life.

* * *

><p>"Mokuba!"<p>

Said boy jumped then froze at the sound of his brother's voice. He didn't sound too happy. "Um, hi?"

"Where have you been? You were supposed to be home at—"

"I know! I know!" Mokuba cut in. "But…I got a little caught up in something. I'm sorry I came home so late."

The brunet only seemed somewhat appeased. "And what did you get caught up in exactly?" he asked gruffly.

The small boy approached his brother cautiously, a small bag nestled in his hands. "I got you a present."

It was Kaiba's turn to freeze. Immediately, his mind started processing everything. Today wasn't his birthday and there were no anniversaries of any sort in regards to his company, so he came to this conclusion: there was no significance to today's date. Which meant…what?

"A…present?" the brunet echoed.

Mokuba gave him a small smile. "Yeah. Here, Seto," he replied, offering him the bag. Taking it from him, the brunet peered inside and withdrew a card…of—

"Is this supposed to be me?" Kaiba deadpanned. Apparently, he was going to have to have a _very _long talk with Pegasus.

"Do you like it? I got it because you're always there for me and I…I want to be there for you, too. No matter what."

Had he been an overly emotional person, the brunet would have cried. He was so touched by his younger brother's thoughtfulness.

"Come here," Kaiba said softly, pulling Mokuba into a hug, much to his surprise. "Thank you. I really do like it, so I'm going to put it in my deck. All right?"

"Okay," Mokuba replied, hugging him back fiercely. He wished all moments with his brother could be like this.

* * *

><p>"Just great," Joey mumbled under his breath as he raced toward Domino High. Who knew it would have taken so long to drop Serenity off? Just as he entered the school grounds, the blond saw Kaiba's limo pull up. He smirked. Apparently he wasn't the only one who was late.<p>

Kaiba stepped out of the limo, briefcase clutched tightly in his hand. It was unusual for him to be late, but getting Mokuba up and ready for school had been nothing but a nightmare this morning.

Joey slowed down just enough to give the brunet a malicious grin. "Is rich boy late? What happened? Your maids decide not to wake ya up this mornin'?" he taunted.

Glaring at the blond, Kaiba slammed the door to the limo shut and picked up a brisk pace in the direction of the school. "Buzz off, fleabag," he snapped.

"Aw, did I hit a nerve?" Cackling to himself, Joey darted in front of him, determined to make it to class on time. But if he couldn't, he'd make sure that the CEO was late as well.

As they reached the front door to the school, Kaiba immediately pushed Joey out of his way. He grabbed the handle and yanked it open, stepping inside with ease.

The blond growled and jumped after him, bolting ahead until he reached their classroom. He smiled triumphantly when he realized he'd just beat Kaiba to the door. And when he placed his hand on the doorknob…another hand covered his own. Looking up, he spotted Kaiba glaring at him angrily.

"I don't think so," the brunet ground out. "Move."

Pfft. Yeah right. "I was here first, moneybags."

"And that matters how? Your betters should always go first," Kaiba said, smirking.

"I know. That's why I'm goin' in first."

Hardening his gaze, the brunet clenched his hand—the one holding both the doorknob and the blond's hand—and gave an angry growl. "I told you to move!"

"And I said no!"

They squabbled for about thirty seconds before the door suddenly opened and the both went flying into the classroom as the final bell rang. Joey hit the floor, the wind getting knocked out of him when Kaiba landed on top of his from behind.

Dazed, they slowly came to and peered blearily around the room. The teacher and the students stared at them, looking both shocked and horrified.

Joey felt blood rush to his face. This had to be the most embarrassing moment of his life.

"Are you two going to take your seats or snuggle for the duration of this class?" Their teacher had gotten over the shock quick. And did he have a death wish? What the hell would have made him say that?

Kaiba snarled and rose to his feet, making sure to smack Joey in the back of the head with his briefcase as he did so.

"Bastard," the blond mumbled under his breath as he got up off the floor. He'd make Kaiba pay later. Getting a detention on the first day of school wasn't on his to-do list. And by the way his teacher was looking at him that was just what he was going to get if he didn't hurry up.

* * *

><p>Five more minutes and they would be free to go to lunch. Joey couldn't wait. They hadn't really done much today since it was the first day back after a long summer. And about a minute ago, their teacher's classroom phone rang, which halted all further class activities. It was perfect.<p>

The blond stretched and leaned back in his seat, his friends pretty much doing the same. Yugi was talking animatedly with Yami, while Tea, Duke, and Tristan were talking about Hetalia from some reason. Ryou and Malik were watching Bakura and Marik confusedly as they kept playing Rock-Paper-Scissors. It seemed that the simple game always kept them occupied, much to the relief of their boyfriends. At least it kept them out of trouble.

Joey's eyes moved back to their teacher…and they stayed there. Something seemed to be wrong, for their teacher had grown very pale. Had something happened?

A few seconds later, the man hung up the phone and stared blankly at his desk for a moment before addressing the class. "You're all dismissed. Go and have an early lunch," he stated. The students didn't have to hear that twice. They practically bolted out of the room.

"However, Mr. Kaiba? Mr. Wheeler? I need you two to stay behind," their teacher continued. "We…need to head to the principal's office."

The principal's office! But they hadn't done anything wrong today…yet.

"Why?" Joey blurted.

"You'll find out when we get there."

"I have better things to do than go to the principal's office. I will not waste—"

"Mr. Kaiba, the issue is extremely important," their teacher interrupted. "Please, come with me."

"Ya make it seem like a matter of life and death," Joey stated, glancing at his friends. When the man didn't respond and headed out of the classroom instead, the blond felt uneasy.

"We'll wait for you outside the principal's office. Okay, Joey?" Yugi piped up.

"Uh…okay," he replied. Joey watched Kaiba step out of the classroom to follow their teacher and he soon followed suit, his friends trailing behind.

When they reached the principal's office, their teacher left them, and Kaiba and Joey soon found themselves ushered inside.

"What's this all about?" Kaiba inquired.

Their principal, Mr. Tavert, looked at the two of them apprehensively. "Perhaps the two of you should sit down," he said quietly.

Joey took a seat while Kaiba still stood. "What's this all about?" the brunet asked.

Mr. Tavert looked to be at a loss for what to say, but he pushed forward anyway. "I received a call about twenty minutes ago from Domino Middle School. Young Mr. Kaiba and Miss. Wheeler have been…"

The blond bolted to his feet. "Have been what?"

"They've been…abducted."

_Abducted_.

The air seemed to get icy as the word sank in. Both teens could feel their chests tightening painfully.

Kaiba's grip loosened on his briefcase to the point that it clattered to the floor. His baby brother had been kidnapped? Along with the blond's sister? Why? Why was this happening?

"They were taken at different times," Mr. Tavert continued. "But no one noticed they were missing until their lunch period. From what we could gather, they've been gone for at least three hours."

Joey swallowed hard. Three hours? "Who took them?" the blond roared, resisting the urge to completely break down.

"I don't know. But we do have a video. It was posted on our school's website nearly ten minutes ago," Mr. Tavert answered shakily.

"What's…on it?" Kaiba asked slowly. He was afraid to even ask the question.

"I waited for the two of you to come before viewing it," the man replied.

The two teens nodded mutely and watched as Mr. Tavert turned his computer screen toward them. And the video started to play.

They inhaled sharply when they saw Mokuba and Serenity, both tied to a chair, gagged, and blindfolded. The two looked so frightened.

"_Greetings, Mr. Kaiba. My name is Ero,_" someone said from the video, a black-clad hand stroking Mokuba's face. It was impossible to see anything else.

"_And greetings to you, too, Mr. Wheeler. I'm Riyu._" Another, _different_ hand reached out and touched Serenity, making the girl flinch. There were two of them.

"_At_ _first we just wanted to play a little game with you, Mr. Kaiba. Or should I call you…Seto?_" Ero laughed. "_But then we decided it would be far more enjoyable playing with two people._"

"_You see,_" continued Riyu, "_there are two of us, so there should be two victims, and two playmates. We hope that you'll take part of our little game._"

"_Otherwise, something bad might happen to these two precious little ones of yours. You wouldn't want something bad to happen to them. Right, Seto? Joey?_" added Ero.

"_Now, if you want to play, we'll tell you the rules. But if you choose not to, then…you'll never see your siblings again. It's just that simple._"

"_We're going to have so much fun!_" Ero crowed in delight. "_And since the two of you like games as much as we do, that's just what we're going to do._"

"_Exactly. We're going to play a game. And if you follow the rules, you'll get your precious people back to you in no time. Are you ready to play?_" asked Riyu.

Kaiba and Joey both clenched their fists simultaneously, waiting for whatever it was they were about to say next.

"_Let's begin! We'll be giving you a series of clues, and if you solve them, you'll get closer to getting back the ones you love. So you have twenty-four hours to find the location of your first clue. And if you don't, you can say bye-bye to these two,_" cackled Ero.

"_And don't think of involving anyone else. No police, no one from Kaiba Corp., no one. But if you want to let your other little friends join in, they can. They'll be involved soon enough anyway._"

"_Remember, you only have twenty-four hours. And don't involve anyone else other than the two of you and your friends if you must,_" warned Ero. "_And if you don't believe me, just check your briefcase, Mr. Kaiba._"

And with that, the video ended.

Both Kaiba and Joey stared at the screen, which was now black, before averting their eyes; they were now glued to the brunet's briefcase.

"Is there anywhere we can go for some privacy?" Kaiba asked hoarsely. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the CEO was shaken by all this. Hell, Joey was the same.

"There's, um…an empty room at the end of the hall. To the right," answered Mr. Tavert.

"Don't say a word of this to _anyone_. Do you understand me?" There was no way Kaiba was going to jeopardize the lives of their siblings, even if he _did _detest the blond.

Mr. Tavert nodded, his body trembling. Kaiba then looked back down at his briefcase, picking it up with shaking fingers. "Let's go."

Joey followed him out of the office without a word, but as soon as they stepped out of the room, they were accosted by the blond's friends.

"Is everything all right, Joey?" Yugi asked, almost immediately.

"Everythin's fine," replied the blond, his face stern. "Kaiba and I just have to sort a few things out, that's all. Ya guys can go to lunch."

"Hm…if you say so, Joey."

Sighing in relief, they watched as his friends left. When they were out of sight, the two teens headed for the vacant room. As soon as they stepped inside, Kaiba locked the door and placed his briefcase on the table in the middle of the room.

"Why didn't you tell your friends?" Kaiba started quietly.

"I don't want them involved. We don't know who the fuck we're dealin' with and I will _not _put them in any unnecessary danger. These two—Ero and Riyu—they're smart. They know how not to get caught…and they know how to get close without anyone bein' any wiser."

The brunet stared at him, his gaze hardening. "If you do anything to endanger my brother, I'll—"

"I'd never do that!" Joey cut in. "Whatever would put your brother's life at risk would be the same for my sister. And I'd _never _let that happen. I care about both of them," he finished softly.

Kaiba closed his eyes, knowing that—deep down—the blond _must _feel the same way he did right now. "Fine. Just…let _me _do the thinking on this one."

Joey glared at him. "I'm a lot smarter than ya give me credit for, ya know? I can help."

The brunet just grunted in disbelief and moved toward the briefcase. He was still perturbed by the fact someone had gotten so close to him without him realizing it, but continued on. His hands hovered by the latches before flipping them up. Next, he lifted the lid and peered inside.

Resting atop his stacks of Duel Monsters cards was a thin sheet of plastic—or rather, a thing plastic case—that held numerous amounts of the same card. A note rested on top of them. It read:

_Your time starts now. If you can find the counterfeit, you'll find the destination of your next clue._

_-Ero and Riyu_

Joey peeked over the brunet's shoulder and read the note. Then his eyes drifted to the cards. There looked to be a total of fifty-six cards, all Fake Trap cards. They were stacked fourteen across and four down.

Kaiba reached into the briefcase and lifted the plastic case holding the cards and set it on the table. They had to find the counterfeit? Out of these cards? But how would that give them their clue? Upon closer inspection, he noted that all the cards appeared identical.

"We should open the case and take a better look at them. But…"

"But what?" Kaiba asked, turning to face him.

"Let's keep the cards how they were placed."

"You mean…not to mix them up or reorganize them?" Joey nodded. "I must admit, that's a good idea."

Who they were dealing with might have decided to take special care to place the cards this exact way, or in this exact order. Kaiba pried open the case and set the lid down on the table. His fingers grazed the first card. What were they supposed to do now?

Joey stretched and picked up the first card, feeling the texture. It felt…different from regular cards. Placing it back down, he picked up the next one, and the one after that. After he'd touched all the cards, he came to a single conclusion: they were all counterfeits.

Kaiba noticed the baffled expression on the blond face, wondering what had popped into his head. "Why are you staring at them like that?"

"They feel funny," Joey replied distantly.

The brunet turned his attention back to the cards. Quickly going through each card, he'd come to the same conclusion the blond had. They all felt—as Joey put it—funny. If he didn't know any better, he'd have said all the cards were counterfeits. But the note had said to find the _counterfeit_, not the _counterfeits_.

Leaning back, he stared at the cards, his brain working a mile a minute. If all the cards were counterfeits, why had the note misinformed them? He truly believed that the clue was in the cards, but it was the note that kept throwing him off. Was he missing something? All they had was a bunch of Fake Trap cards and—

Wait. That was it. The Fake Trap was a clue. The note. The note was a trap. It had been meant to deceive them.

"All the cards are counterfeits," Kaiba said, breaking the silence.

"I kinda thought so, too. But the note—"

"The note is a diversion. However, the clue _has _to be in these cards," the brunet insisted.

"Do ya think there are clues in the pictures or in…what's written on the cards or somethin'?"

"There might be. We'll both look at them, one by one, and if we find anything, we'll make note of it. Even if something as much as the color is out of place, we should take note of it."

Joey nodded, pulling up a chair in front of the table. Kaiba did the same. And so began the analysis of every single card.

* * *

><p>Four hours. They'd spent four fucking hours dissecting these damn cards and nothing! Absolutely nothing! It was enough to send Kaiba over the edge.<p>

The brunet stood, his chair clattering to the floor as he swiped his briefcase off the table in anger, tears stinging his eyes. Joey watched the all the cards inside flutter to the floor in every direction before staring at Kaiba's back. He was trembling.

Joey clutched the card he was holding and felt a tear slip from his eyes, hitting said card and running down to his finger. Rising from his seat, he placed a gentle hand on Kaiba's shoulder, but he flinched away from his touch.

"We'll figure this out, Kaiba," the blond said, his voice sounding rough.

"I don't see it! Why don't I see it?" the brunet cried. "I should see it! What am I missing?"

Joey never thought he'd _ever _see Kaiba like this. _Never_. He seemed weak…vulnerable. Much like how he was feeling right now. But he wasn't sure if the brunet could handle this sort of pressure. Sure, Kaiba had dealt with Mokuba being kidnapped before, but there could only be so much the older teen could take.

"Kaiba—"

"I can't lose him like this," mumbled the brunet, more to himself than Joey. "He's all I have left. Mokuba's all I have left."

Joey blinked a time or two before doing the one thing that would snap Kaiba out of this. He slapped him.

Kaiba held his cheek and stared at the blond in shock, but his senses seemed to be coming back.

"You're not helpin' anyone if ya lose it. Come on, you're a genius! Ya brag about it all the time! Are ya gonna let a couple of freaks get ya down? We can do this! And we still have about twenty hours left."

He hated to admit it, but the blond was right. He was Seto Kaiba! And no one fucked with his family and got away with it!

Feeling at least a little proud that he'd knocked some sense into the brunet, Joey looked back down at the card in his hands. Confusion reared its ugly head once more as he ran his finger over the picture. The color was disappearing…fading…and there was something else there.

But they'd been touching these cards for hours! Why was it now that—wait. When the tear fell from his eye, it hit the card. Did that mean…they had to make the cards wet?

"Kaiba, look!" Joey declared, showing him the card in his hands. He'd rubbed off the rest of the coloring to reveal a letter. "We gotta rub off the color with water. I think it'll give us a message after that."

The brunet went to his schoolbag and withdrew a water bottle and a pack of tissues. He set the items on the table and started working on cleaning the cards.

* * *

><p>Although an arduous task, the two teens finally had wiped all the cards clean. Now looking back at them, the cards revealed a rather strange message. It read:<p>

_Kame Kame Kame_

_Where are you?_

_It's been long_

_G S, Aishiteru_

"I don't get it," stated Joey.

Kaiba wasn't sure he got it either. Some cards held punctuation, other blank spaces, and the rest letters. It made up a total of fourteen cards in each line, but there was no sense to it.

Well, the letters definitely gave way to this so-called riddle, and the blank cards were there to divide the letters into words. However, the question mark, the apostrophe, and the comma had each been given their own card and other than that, there was no other form of punctuation anywhere. It didn't make sense. Was it another clue?

"What's this mean anyway? Is that even English?" continued the blond.

The brunet looked it over again. "No. Some of it's in Japanese. Kame means turtle and aishiteru means…I love you."

"So…it basically says, '_Turtle Turtle Turtle / Where are you? / It's been long / G S, I love you'_. They kinda suck at this whole rhyming thing."

Kaiba shook his head. Regardless of the impression this message gave, it was quite clever. But the 'G' and 'S' were seriously pissing him off.

Joey stared at it again. The 'Turtle,' 'G,' and 'S' didn't make any sense to him whatsoever. And it did nothing but pop out to him. What did a 'Turtle' have to do with this anyway? The only 'Turtle' he knew of was—

The blond's eyes widened in realization. "Turtle Game Shop."

"What?" Kaiba questioned.

"The 'G' and 'S' stand for 'Game Shop.' And the 'Turtle' makes it the 'Turtle Game Shop.' That's where we need to go! We need to go now!"

Kaiba was a bit surprised by the blond's sudden forcefulness at leaving. "What—"

"It's Yugi's place!" Joey cried desperately.

* * *

><p>"They figured it out," started Riyu, looking somewhat surprised.<p>

"What? You thought they wouldn't?" inquired Ero.

The other nodded. "With a badly written poem like that, it was obvious it would take some time to solve."

"It wasn't _that_ bad," Ero protested.

"Hm."

"It wasn't!"

"…"

"Stop looking at me like that!"

"Anyway," Riyu began again, "they're headed for the Turtle Game Shop. It's my turn now. And by the looks of it, time isn't on their side."

* * *

><p>Joey and Kaiba raced out of the school and into the limo that was waiting for them. As soon as they got inside, the brunet practically screamed at his driver to take them to the Game Shop.<p>

"There's something I don't get," Kaiba mumbled.

"What?"

"If they gave us twenty-four hours to solve the first clue…does that mean the second clue is already in play? Perhaps telling us that we had twenty-four hours was a trick."

"Ya mean like they gave us the time, knowin' we'd take our time solvin' the clue, and then use that time to continue this game of theirs?"

"As unintelligible as that sounded, yes. I believe the only thing we can actually rely on are their clues and nothing more. It seems as if everything has some hidden meaning," elaborated Kaiba. "Have you tried calling Yugi?"

Joey growled and clenched his cell phone. "Yeah. And he's not pickin' up. I tried his cell and the phone at the shop, but no one's answerin'. Someone should be there."

Kaiba gritted his teeth, clenching his fists in the process. What the fuck were these two individuals up to? Why did they have them running all over the place playing this fucked up game? However, they had no choice but to play. If they didn't…

"We're here, Kaiba," Joey started, opening the door to the limo and leaping out before the vehicle had even reached a complete stop. Exiting the limo right behind him, the two of them raced to the front of the Game Shop.

"Don't open it yet," said Kaiba. This only made Joey's hand freeze on the door handle.

"Why not? They could be hurt!" the blond insisted.

"It could also be a trap," responded the brunet, pushing Joey off to the side and peeking into the shop through the window. His eyes panning the inside, he noticed that the lights were off. And there were three, very still figures on the floor. "Shit." Traps be damned.

Yanking the door open, he stepped inside, Joey at his heels.

"Yugi?" the blond called out, turning on the light switch. As he did so, he spotted the small teen laying on the floor. "Yugi!"

"What the fuck is that?" Kaiba asked suddenly, drawing Joey's attention from the gradually stirring Yugi.

The blond looked to where the CEO was pointing and he just stared. It was…a slot machine. But it wasn't any regular old slot machine. This one was suspended from the ceiling.

It still looked like a slot machine. The thing had three reels—which rested on pictures of skulls and crossbones—and a lever, but the slot where one would normally stick coins into the machine was much larger. And the tray where the winnings from the machine would deposit themselves had been replaced with was looked like a digital clock, except it wasn't active.

"Joey?" Yugi's soft voice penetrated their thoughts.

"You're okay," Joey sighed in relief. "Do ya know what happened? Did ya see anythin'?"

"No, I didn't. Everything just—wait. What's this?" Yugi held up his hand, which was holding a Duel Monsters card, Gold Sarcophagus.

"Let me see that," interceded Kaiba, taking the card from him. As he examined the card, Joey and Yugi went to rouse both Yami and Solomon. Kaiba stepped up to the slot machine and glanced back at the card.

"Ya think we're supposed to stick the cards in or somethin'?" Joey asked.

"Cards?" Kaiba echoed.

The blond nodded and passed him two more Gold Sarcophagus cards.

"There's only one way to find out," muttered the brunet as he stuck one of the cards into the slot on the machine. He pulled the lever after doing so, but only the first reel spun. After some time, it landed on a six.

"Stick in another one," said Joey.

Kaiba did so. And when he pulled the lever, the second reel spun…and landed on a six. Inserting the last card, he pulled the lever yet again, this time with the third and final reel spinning, and that also landed on a six.

Suddenly, the slot machine made a loud dinging sound as if it had hit the jackpot, but instead of coins flushing out as the prize, something else fell out from underneath the machine. It was a pair of dice.

"Are we gamblin' now?"

"I don't think so," Kaiba muttered, looking back up at the slot machine. It was then he noticed something else. The spot that had looked like a digital clock was now on. And it was counting down. But to what?

"According to this timer, we have twenty-eight minutes," Kaiba rambled, watching the digital clock count down. But what they hell was it counting down to? And did they just have twenty-eight minutes to get wherever they needed to go?

His blue eyes panning the slot machine, they rested on the 666 that seemed to call out to him. Wait a minute. He looked back at the countdown, glanced at his watch, and back at the 666.

"Shit." The 666 was a time. 6:66 PM. Or, 7:06 PM. Which meant they now had twenty-seven minutes left to get to wherever the hell they had to go. But what was the clue?

"Hey, Kaiba?" Joey started, leaning down to pick up the fallen dice. "I think I know where we gotta go."

The brunet looked at the dice Joey was holding and it all seemed to click.

Duke Devlin. They were going to his Game Shop. Who else was a fan of dice?

"Let's go."

Only twenty-six minutes to go.

* * *

><p>"Hurry up! We only got five minutes left!" Joey exclaimed once they'd reached Duke's place. However, both of them hesitated at the door. "Should we open it?"<p>

"We're already here, aren't we?" Kaiba snapped at him before grabbing the doorknob and yanking the poor door open.

The two of them stepped into the seemingly vacant shot. Taking a few careful steps forward, they jumped when they heard what sounded like a scream coming from none other than Duke.

"This way," said Joey, hurriedly following the black-haired CEO's voice.

Once they found him, they paused.

"What the hell?" muttered Kaiba. Had the situation not been so serious, this might have actually been funny.

Joey cleared his throat. "Duke, um, why are ya—"

"Don't just stand there gawking at me. Turn this fucking thing off!" Duke screamed, trying to cover his naked body. His hands were bound and he was suspended from the ceiling with a…device connected to his you-know-what.

"What are we turnin' off exactly?" inquired Joey, eyeing the strange looking machine skeptically.

"It's a fucking erotic electro-stimulation machine!"

"Huh?" came Joey's response.

"What he means to say," Kaiba interceded, "is that he has metallic loops wrapped around his…penis…and that machine to the right is sending electric currents to…stimulate him."

"Ya mean it's makin' him hard?" Joey screeched. He shut his eyes. Why the fuck would anyone want to do that?

"Just hurry up and turn it off! Every few minutes the frequency gets higher!" cried Duke.

"And we only have three minutes left," added Kaiba.

"Are ya tellin' me that if we don't turn this thing off, it's gonna fry him or somethin'?"

"Probably," replied the brunet.

"Just hurry up!"

"Okay, okay!" said Joey as he jogged over to the machine. He stared at it for a moment. The blond had expected it to be a little more complex than this. All he had to do was flip the switch to off?

* * *

><p>"…"<p>

"What?" started Ero. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"That was it?" deadpanned Riyu.

"What do you mean _it_? I thought it was pretty cool."

"They only turned the machine off."

"Yeah? What's your point?" replied Ero.

"Where's their next clue?" Riyu inquired.

"…"

"Well?"

"Oops."

"Why do I even bother with you?"

* * *

><p>"All right, he looks to be in good health," the EMT, Bryan, said to Kaiba.<p>

The brunet nodded in understanding, watching the rest of the EMTs leave while Joey still tended to Duke.

"Did they tell ya anythin'? Anythin' at all?" asked Joey.

"I have no idea what's going on. One minute, I'm working on a game and the next, I'm waking up like…_that_," he replied, burying his face in his hands. "What the fuck did you two drag me into?"

"We didn't drag you into anything," Kaiba snapped. "Our siblings have been kidnapped by psychopaths who want to play a sadistic little game. They're even going after people we know personally!"

Joey swallowed hard. The fact that these _psychopaths_ knew so much about them was starting to scare the hell out of him.

"I wonder who they are?" began the blond. "And where are they gettin' all this information about us from?"

"Or who?" Kaiba sighed, momentarily drained. He was a somebody—rich, powerful—but Joey wasn't anyone to brag about. So why take his sister?

"What're we gonna do?" Joey implored, looking anxious. "We didn't find a clue this time. What if we did somethin' wrong?"

At this, Kaiba began to panic a little. What if they had done something wrong? What if they'd blown their chances of ever seeing their siblings ever again?

Suddenly, the brunet's cell phone began to ring. Pulling it out, he noticed that it was an _Unknown _number.

"Hello?" Kaiba answered.

"_It seems we have a change of plans_."

"It's you," he ground out.

"_Of course it is. Who else would it be?_" Riyu continued.

"Look here! I'm tired of playing this stupid game of yours! Release my brother and Wheeler's sister this instant before you regret it!"

"_Oh? And how are you going to do that? You have no idea where they are or where we are for that matter. Additionally, without any trace of forensic evidence, there's no telling how long it would take for you to find us. And by that time, Mokuba and Serenity could have died a slow and painful death_."

"Listen here, you fucking bitch!" Kaiba yelled. "I'm not playing this game anymore. Release them and I'll give you whatever the fuck you want!"

"…"

"Did you hear me?"

"_I heard you. I just don't appreciate being screamed at. And you know what else?_"

"What?"

"_I think I have to show you just how serious we are._" Her voice had taken a deadly calm tone.

Kaiba felt himself pale, which only served to unnerve Joey further.

"What do you mean?"

"_I hold all the cards in this game and I'll deal you whatever I think you deserve,_" she said. "_We still play the game. So I suggest you get to Kaiba Corp. in half an hour._"

At this, the line went dead.

"What did she say?" Joey asked immediately.

"We need to get to Kaiba Corp.," he muttered. "Devlin, call…everyone we know and take them to my mansion. They know how to get near _everyone_ and I'll be damned if anyone else gets caught in their stupid game."

* * *

><p>Joey couldn't believe this. As soon as they'd gotten out of the limo, Kaiba had grabbed his hand. They were holding hands! Why were they holding hands?<p>

Had it been something one of those psychopaths had said? Had they told Kaiba that they'd abduct him or something? Was that why they were holding hands?

And even when they entered the Kaiba Corp. building—in front of hundreds of employees—the brunet still did not relinquish his hold.

All in all…it felt kind of…nice.

"Oh, Mr. Kaiba, sir. A package came for you a few minutes ago," announced someone from the front desk.

Kaiba froze. "A package?"

"Yes, sir. There was no return address on it, but it was sent up to your office."

"I see," he replied. "Follow me."

They were holding hands! Joey had no choice but to follow.

"What do ya think is in the package?" the blond asked quietly as they stepped into the elevator.

Kaiba shook his head, not really wanting to think about that. He just wanted his little brother back. Unshed tears stung his eyes…and his heart was starting to hurt. Did Joey feel like this, too?

"He's all I have left," Kaiba whispered hoarsely. "If I lose him…I don't know what I'll do."

He just when he felt Joey give his hand a reassuring squeeze. When had they been holding hands? Either way, it didn't really matter. It was good to know that he had someone—even if it was Joey—to support him…and vice versa. So he squeezed his hand back.

The elevator doors opened, and Joey found himself being dragged down an empty hallway.

"Here it is," said Kaiba, releasing his hold of Joey's hand.

They entered the office cautiously. And there, resting innocently on the brunet's desk, was a sealed, brown box with a label addressed to him.

"Shut the door," Kaiba ordered quietly.

Joey did so and then came beside the brunet to look at the box. "We should open it."

Kaiba fumbled around his desk for a box cutter. Once he found it, he cut the packing tape in order to open the box. But as he did so, a dreadful smell seeped out.

"What the hell is that?" Joey asked as they opened the box.

Kaiba's hands shakily reached inside the box and pulled out Mokuba's school jacket, covered in blood and some of his hair. "It's Mokuba's," he said, dropping the jacket back into the box and stumbling backward.

Joey clasped a hand to his mouth, looking utterly horrified. This wasn't a clue. This was a damn message.

_Crash!_

The blond snapped his head around, only to see Kaiba throwing whatever he could get his hands on into the wall. He was losing it.

"Kaiba, stop!"

"They hurt him! Those damn bastards hurt him! And I couldn't do anything to stop it!" the brunet cried. His tears finally started to fall.

"We can get them back," Joey tried to assure him, his own tears falling. "We just have to do what they say."

"Getting them back is one thing! Getting them back alive is another thing entirely!" Kaiba roared. It seemed like that was all he could take, for he collapsed to his knees on the floor, his body shaking from the force of his crying. "I can't lose him."

Joey knelt in front of the brunet. "We'll get them _both _back. Alive."

"How do you know that? You can't know that. I can't do this. I don't want to do this anymore."

Kaiba started to become hysterical. He was acting as if Mokuba was already dead.

"Listen to me, Kaiba," Joey begged. "Doin' this to yourself isn't gonna help Mokuba _or _Serenity. And if ya lose it, what am I gonna do? I can't do this by myself."

"They're both probably gone already," Kaiba continued frantically. "They just want us to play this game so we can claim their bodies."

"Kaiba."

"They're gone."

"Kaiba!"

"They're dead. I know it."

"Seto!" Joey screamed.

This seemed to shut the brunet up for a moment. When had the blond's face gotten so close to his? There were also tears in his eyes…and they looked lost…broken. It was as if his own feelings were reflecting off of Joey's face.

"I can't do this," Kaiba whispered desperately, hoping to find a reason to see hope in the blond's expression.

Before he even knew what he was doing, Joey had grabbed Kaiba's face in his hands and pulled him into a deep kiss. After the shock wore off on the both of them, their kiss intensified. It was passionate and filled with emotion. They felt that this was the only thing keeping them going in a world that seemed to want to torture them.

As they broke away, they stared into each other's eyes, confusion and longing evident in the both of them.

But before either of them could speak about what had happened, Kaiba's cell phone rang.

"You answer it this time," the brunet said, passing the phone to Joey.

"Hello?" the blond answered.

"_I hope you enjoyed our little gift,_" started Riyu. "_But I'm not through yet. You two will stay in that very office. Don't leave. I will call you within the next twenty-four hours so that you may receive your next clue. This game is still on._"

After she hung up, Joey threw the phone across the room.

"What did she say?" Kaiba asked forlornly.

"We gotta stay here. She said she'd call back within the next twenty-four hours. We gotta wait," Joey answered.

They had to wait? Anything could happen within twenty-four hours. Anything.

Suddenly, Kaiba felt hands cupping his face again. He turned his head to look blankly at Joey. He just felt so empty. But when he looked into those amber eyes, it made the pain hurt less.

"I don't wanna be alone," the blond said softly. "Please don't push me away."

"What do you mean?"

"Can ya just…hold me? Please? I-I just keep thinkin' and it's makin' me crazy and—"

"Thinking about what?" Kaiba asked distantly.

"It might not even be Mokuba's blood. What if it's…Serenity's?" Joey gasped as he started crying again.

Kaiba hadn't thought of that. He'd just assumed that since it was Mokuba's jacket that it was his blood. But it could also be Serenity's. This was just too much to bear, even for him.

Settling himself more comfortably on the floor, he pulled Joey into his lap, wrapped his arms around him, and rested his chin on his shoulder.

"I don't want to be alone, either," Kaiba replied.

Joey turned slightly and let his cheek rest against the brunet's. Then he snaked his arm around Kaiba's waist, giving him as much of a hug as he was able to.

"Thank ya, Seto."

"No. Thank you, Joey."

* * *

><p>Twelve hours had passed and still no call. It had been the longest night the both of them had ever gone through. Sleeping <em>hadn't<em> been an option; they'd been too afraid. Not that their overactive minds would have allowed them any peace of mind while sleeping anyway.

Joey turned in Kaiba's lap, lightly resting his chin on the brunet's shoulder. "Do ya think they'll call?"

"I don't know," he replied in a dead tone. His hand subconsciously reached up to stroke the blond's hair comfortingly. "I really hope they will. Or at least…let us talk to them."

"Seto?"

"Yes?"

Joey moved so that it looked like he was straddling Kaiba's lap. "I would do anythin' to save them. _Anythin'_. Even if it means riskin' my life to do so."

The brunet frowned. "What are you saying?"

Swallowing hard, the blond continued. "I'm sayin' that if it comes down to it—one of us has to risk our life and all—I'll do it. Just…promise me somethin'?"

Kaiba started shaking his head. "No. Nothing's going to happen to you."

"But if it does," Joey cut in, "and Serenity and Mokuba are free, can ya take care of her? Please? There's no one else."

"I can't—"

"_Promise_ me. Please?" The blond was begging him, honestly begging him.

"I promise. However, I will do everything I can to make sure that all of us will be safe. But if we're too late…" Kaiba paused. He didn't want to think about that; it _couldn't _be an option.

Suddenly, Joey's hand touched his face, and he jerked. "If we're too late…what'll ya do?" he asked.

Kaiba stared into the amber eyes glistening with unshed tears. "I think you know the answer to that," he replied solemnly.

The blond shook his head slowly. "Ya can't do that," Joey said hoarsely. "What I am supposed to do if ya do that?"

"You have friends. I have no one else."

"But they wouldn't understand. Not like _you _would. Ya can't leave me alone if we're too late to save them." Joey tugged on the front of Kaiba's shirt for emphasis.

The brunet placed his hands on top of the blond's and stroked them before moving them to his face. Leaning upward, he placed a soft kiss on his lips, making his final decision. "I'll stay with you for as long as I can."

"Thank you," Joey whispered, kissing him back. "I'll stay with ya for as long as ya let me."

They kissed again, this one more passionate than the other ones had been. They didn't care if it was just the moment that made them do it or if they really felt something for one another. The only thing they did know was that they needed this more than anything right now.

Joey surprised Kaiba by lying down on the floor submissively, pulling the brunet with him as he did so. The blond's hair was splayed around his head, making him look like an angel—_his_ angel.

Growing bolder, Kaiba lowered his head, his lips brushing Joey's once more before claiming his already swollen ones. How was it that the blond looked so beautiful? Had he always looked that way? And if so, why was he noticing it now? Whatever. It didn't matter. All that counted was that they had each other. They had each other now.

A shrill ring from Kaiba's cell phone halted their actions. Sitting up, Joey wandered over to where he'd thrown the phone last night. Picking it up, he said, "It's them."

"Answer it."

"Hello?" Joey responded.

"_Are you ready for the next round?_" It was Riyu.

"Yes," the blond gulped. "What do you want us to do?"

"_Go to the bottom floor of Kaiba Corp. and exit through the back. There will be a single car parked out there. I want you to boost it. My sources tell me you know all about that. Once you're in the car, shut the doors, and start it up. You have five minutes. Don't be late._"

With that, she hung up.

"Shit," Joey hissed.

"What is it?"

"We need to get to the back of this buildin' now. We got five minutes!"

Shit was right. Racing out of Kaiba's office, they bolted for the bottom floor in record time. When they finally reached the back door, they burst through it, nearly taking the door from the hinge.

"Over there," Joey said hurriedly as he rushed over to the car. But then he slowed down. "You've gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me."

"What? What the hell are we supposed to do?" inquired Kaiba.

"We're supposed to boost this car, but…it's got an impenetrable locking system. I can't get into this."

Kaiba looked into the car and noticed a timer. They had a little over three minutes left. "We have to try."

"Well, unless ya can hack into the damn thing, we ain't gettin' in!" Joey retaliated.

The brunet looked back at the car. "I might be able to do that."

"Huh?"

"If I can get the car to unlock, you can start it?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Then get ready," said Kaiba, pulling something from his pocket.

"What the hell are ya doin'?"

"I'm using an application on my PDA to hack into the car. I'm going to try to confuse the receiver and—"

_Click!_

"Ya opened the damn trunk!"

"Give me a second!"

"We don't have a sec—"

_Click!_

"Get in!" Kaiba ordered, running over to the passenger's side while Joey got into the driver's seat. They shut the doors simultaneously. "Now what?"

"Now I override the ignition…with the secret backdoor sequence," the blond replied as he did some weird jiggling around with anything that had a handle. Soon, the ignition started.

But so did something else.

"What the fuck?" Joey gasped as something started blowing into the car from the vents. It looked like a gas.

"We need to get out!" cried Kaiba, making to open the door, but the car locked itself, preventing them from getting it open.

A few moments later, they both lost consciousness.

* * *

><p>"Fuck," Joey groaned as he sat up and rubbed his temple. His head was pounding. Slowly opening his eyes, he blinked a few times until his vision cleared. When it did, he had to close his eyes and reopen them just to make sure what he was seeing was real.<p>

Kaiba—still unconscious—was strapped to a chair with secure metal restraints he'd never seen before. His arms, chest, and legs looked to be quite immobile. But that wasn't the odd part. It also seemed as if the brunet was connected to a heart monitor; however, it wasn't on.

Rising to his feet, Joey made toward Kaiba, but a monitor near his right suddenly came to life. He could only see the silhouette of a person, nothing more.

"_How are you doing, Joey?_"

"…Riyu?" his voice cracked.

"_Of course. Are you ready for the next stage of the game?_"

Joey grit his teeth. "Do I really have a choice?"

"_Not unless you want to see poor little Mokuba and Serenity alive._"

"Fine. What's the next part of this game?"

"_I thought you'd never ask_," she stated. "_As you probably noticed, your little brunet over there is not only strapped to a chair but a heart monitor. He's currently been sedated, but he should wake soon. Once he's woken, the heart monitor will kick on, showing his current heart rate._"

"Okay," Joey replied unsurely.

"_At that point, he will have ten minutes to get his heart rate up to 120. Once it hits that mark, the chair will release him and you'll receive your next clue._"

"And if it doesn't get to 120?"

Riyu chuckled. "_If his heart rate doesn't reach 120 within that ten minutes, the bomb goes off and you're dead_," she said as the monitor shut off.

Joey inhaled sharply. Bomb?

"Ugh…"

The blond turned his attention to Kaiba, who seemed to be waking up. That only triggered the heart monitor.

And the countdown.

"Crap," muttered Joey, racing to Kaiba's side. He tapped his face lightly. "Come on. Snap out of it."

"Joey?" the brunet said distantly. Then his eyes seemed to gain recognition. "What the hell is going on? Why am I strapped to a chair?"

"Okay," replied the blond, glancing at the heart monitor. Kaiba's heart rate was currently 54. "Riyu said that you're strapped to a chair and a heart monitor. We need to get your heart rate up to 120 in order for ya to get free and for us to get the next clue."

"How the _hell_ am I supposed to get my heart rate up while strapped to a fucking chair?" Kaiba's heart rate jumped to 72.

"Well you're gonna have to, cuz if ya don't within the next nine minutes, a bomb's gonna go off!"

Kaiba growled as he wriggled in his chair. "This can't be happening!"

"Hey, keep doin' that. Your heart rate's goin' up."

"Doing what?" Kaiba snapped.

"Gettin' angry."

"I hate to break this to you, but my anger will only get my heart rate up so far!" he shouted.

And he was right. The brunet's heart rate wouldn't break 75.

After a few seconds, Joey spoke up. "I have an idea."

"What is it?"

The blond looked at him nervously. "You're not gonna like it."

"If it will get us out of this situation, I don't care what it _is_—fuck! What the he—oh shit!"

Joey's gaze shot to the heart monitor as he continued to rub his palm against Kaiba's groin. It was embarrassing and completely out of line, but it seemed to be the only way to get his heart rate up; it was currently at 96. And it seemed to stay there. Perhaps he needed to take it up a level.

* * *

><p>Ero stared at the video feed, confusion marring her features. "Hey, Riyu?"<p>

"What?" she replied boredly.

"When did we get a porn channel?"

"…excuse me?"

"Here! Come look!"

"Holy—"

* * *

><p>"Shit!" Kaiba groaned. This wasn't going to get his heart rate up. It was going to make it stop. What the fuck was the blond doing? "Mutt? I don't think—"<p>

Too late. Joey stuck his hand down the brunet's pants and grabbed hold of him.

_Click!_

_Beep!_

_Thump!_

Both Kaiba and Joey froze. The straps confining the brunet to the chair had released him, the heart monitor had shut itself off, and a small box had fallen to the floor from an opening in the ceiling.

Kaiba cleared his throat. "Hand."

"Huh? Oh!" Joey exclaimed, yanking his hand away, his face staining red. He turned his back on the brunet so that he could straighten himself out. "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it," commented Kaiba as he walked passed Joey. He paused in front of the box. "It…we didn't have a choice."

"I'm really, really sorry. I couldn't think of—"

"It's okay, Joey. Let's just open this box."

Kaiba picked up the box. It was wooden with a small gold latch on the side. He lifted the latch and opened the box.

"Are those…chess pieces?" asked Joey.

"Yes," replied Kaiba. There were two chess pieces in the box. A black rook and a black king. What did it mean?

"You're the chess guy. What's it mean?"

"I'm the chess guy," the brunet echoed. "I'm the chess guy!"

"Ya wanna let me in on your little revelation?"

"This clue was meant for me," Kaiba started. "I beat Gozaburo at chess in order to get adopted. The rook looks very much like a castle. And then we have the king. A king and his castle. In my mind, white has always represented Kaiba Corp. and black has always represented the mansion. My mansion. We need to get to my mansion."

"Are ya sure?"

Kaiba stared straight into the blond's eyes. "Positive."

* * *

><p>"Where the hell is everyone?" inquired Joey as they stepped inside the mansion.<p>

"And why is it so quiet?" added Kaiba. "Let's start in the living room."

They made their way through the foyer, and after a few twists and turns, they arrived in the living room.

"Yugi!" Joey shouted, racing over to his short friend. The small teen—along with Tea, Duke, and Tristan—were all sprawled out on the floor and appeared to be unconscious.

After much shaking, Joey was able to wake Yugi while Kaiba set to waking the others.

"Joey?"

"Yugi! Are ya okay? What happened?" Joey asked hurriedly.

"I…I don't remember," he said his voice trailing off. Then his eyes widened. "They took Yami!"

"What? How do ya know?"

"That's the last thing I remember before getting knocked out. Someone grabbed Yami from behind and dragged him out. I think they might have use chloroform or something on him," answered Yugi.

_Ding dong!_

"Was that the doorbell?" asked Tea as she rubbed her head.

"Yes," replied Kaiba. "Wait here."

"No way in hell. I'm comin' with," said Joey.

Kaiba sighed but resigned himself to allowing the blond to follow him. When they reached the front door, Kaiba opened it. Again they were faced with a box, but this time it was much larger. They both glanced around the front yard. Seeing no one, they returned their attention to the box.

"Open it," urged Joey.

Steeling himself for the worst, Kaiba knelt down and ripped the box open. "Are these…beer bottles?"

"Why the hell would they send us beer bottles?" Joey reached for one of the bottles and examined it. They were your typical looking beer bottles, with the label having nothing but the letter 'J' on them. All of the bottles had 'J's on them.

"I don't understand this one," said Kaiba.

"I do," replied Joey. "J'z."

"What?"

"J'z. It's a café where my old gang used to hang out. We had everythin' from beer to cigarettes. There are nothin' but beer bottles here with 'J's on them. So we gotta go to J'z."

"You're sure about this?"

"Yes."

"Then let's go."

"Wait!" cried Yugi. "We're coming with you."

"No, Yug'. It's dangerous."

"They took Yami, tortured Duke, and have Serenity and Mokuba. We're friends and are in this together until the end. Let us help you," insisted the small teen.

"Fine," gave in Joey. "But if things get ugly, ya gotta listen to me. Got it? Good. Let's go."

* * *

><p>"Well, if it ain't Joey Wheeler. And what brings you here?" stated Hirutani.<p>

Joey stared at his former gang leader. He was kicking back in a half torn chair as he took random swigs of his beer.

"I see ya haven't changed," said Joey. "I'm here for the next clue." He might as well get to the point.

"_You're_ the one I've been waiting for?"

"Ya expected someone else?"

"Some bitch came by here earlier. Told me my whole gang was in jail and they'd stay that way unless I helped her."

"What did she look like?"

"Don't know. Kept her face covered."

"What'd she say then?"

"She told me to give ya this," said Hirutani, tossing the blond what looked like a necklace.

"What the hell is this thing?"

"Don't ask me. Just get your ass out. I've done my job."

Joey took the necklace thing and headed out of J'z. His friends raced over to him as soon as he emerged.

"Well?" inquired Yugi.

"It's a necklace thingy," said Joey.

"Let me see that," stated Kaiba as he snatched the item away from the blond's hands. As he examined it, he agreed that it was a necklace with a pendant on the end that looked like an anchor.

"I got it!" exclaimed Yugi. "The docks! We have to go to the docks!"

"Huh? How'd ya get that from this?" asked Joey.

"Remember when we had to duel at the docks, Joey? We were strapped to an anchor, remember?"

"Yeah," the blond said softly. "How the hell do these chicks know so much about us?"

"I don't know," commented Kaiba, "but we need to get to the docks. And we need to do it now."

* * *

><p>"Now where do we go?" asked Duke once they'd reached the docks.<p>

"There!" cried Joey, pointing to a warehouse with an anchor on the side. "That's gotta be it!"

"Then let's go," said Kaiba as they all raced off toward the warehouse.

Once they entered the warehouse, they came to a screeching halt. Mokuba, Serenity, and Yami were definitely present, and they looked to be uninjured. But they were each in a clear box-shaped case, their hands and legs strapped to the corners of it.

"It's about time you showed up," came a feminine voice from the shadows.

"Yay! They're here!" came another one.

Kaiba's glare was now fully in place. "Show yourselves this instant!"

"Okie dokie! I'm Ero!" A young woman came skipping out of the shadows like she was hyped up on sugar, long black hair framing her face.

"You're definitely not the brains of the operation," deadpanned Kaiba.

"Hey!" she responded indignantly.

"He's right," came the other voice. Out stepped another young woman. This time a blonde with a hard expression o her face. "I'm Riyu…obviously."

"We're here. Now let them go," insisted Joey.

"No," said Riyu.

"What? Why not? We figured out your stupid clues! We've been halfway around the city, doin' everythin' you've said! Let them go!"

"Not until we duel," stated Riyu. "A double duel. Ero and myself will face you and Seto."

Kaiba paused. "I'm assuming there are stipulations involved?"

"Of course. Duel us and you get them back."

"That's all?"

"That's all."

"Fine."

"Duel disks are this way," said Riyu, leading them to a table. The four of them grabbed a duel disk and inserted their desks. "Since we're double dueling, each of us gets 4,000 Life Points, meaning 8,000 Life Points per team. You can go first, Seto."

Kaiba looked at their siblings and Yami. It was now or never. Taking a deep breath, he drew his cards. A small smile came to his face. He'd drawn the card Mokuba had given him. "I play Kaibaman in defense mode and end my turn." He needed to see just what he was dealing with here.

Riyu smirked. "My turn now. Oh, look at that. I play Ookazi," she said. Their Life Points took 800 damage.

The same time Yami screamed.

"Oh, did I forget to mention that whenever Life Points are lost Yami gets electrocuted?" Riyu said. "So I guess I'll just have to play my second Ookazi and end my turn."

Yami screamed again, which only made Joey and Ero look at him sympathetically.

Joey gulped and looked at his hand. "I play Dragon Zombie in attack mode and I attack your Life Points directly," he said as their Life Points dropped by 1600.

Yami screamed again.

Ero jumped and looked at him in confusion. She pointed at him and looked at everyone else, hoping they witnessed what she had.

They did.

"What the hell?"

Riyu smirked again. "I said he would get electrocuted every time Life Points are lost. I never said whose. Make your move Ero."

"Um…I…I…pass?" she said.

"Pass? What do you mean pass?" snapped Riyu.

"I can't play anything! It's not my fault! I only have high level monsters and some crappy spell cards!"

"You just told them what's in your hand, you moron!"

Kaiba just watched the two bicker before he made his move. "I tribute my Kaibaman to summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon to the field. And I'll attack you directly."

They lost 3000 Life Points as Yami screamed.

"My turn now!" growled Riyu as she drew a card. "What the hell is this?"

Ero averted her eyes.

"What did you do to my deck?"

"What? I just took out some of the ugly stuff and added some cute things."

"Cute things? _Cute _things?"

"Do I take this to mean she ended her turn?" whispered Joey.

"I suppose so."

The blond cleared his throat. "I tribute my Zombie Dragon to summon Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon!" he announced.

Riyu and Ero continued to bicker with each other.

"Uh…hey?"

And they still continued to bicker.

"Bad guys?"

And bicker.

"Will you two shut the fuck up?" snapped Kaiba. "I have had it! This duel is over! We are taking Mokuba, Serenity, and Yami out of here. If you even try to stop us, I will slit your throats with this fucking duel disk. Got it?"

"Got it," squeaked Ero.

"No. Not got it!" interrupted Riyu. "This duel _will _continue."

"And why is that?" asked Kaiba snidely.

"So that you and Joey can finally get together!"

"…"

Riyu's face suddenly turned a bright red.

Kaiba slipped off his duel disk and tossed it onto the floor, taking long, threatening strides until he faced Riyu. "Excuse me?" he deadpanned.

"I…wanted to get you and Joey together?" It was her turn to squeak.

"You abducted our siblings, gave us mysterious clues to solve, had us running around all of Domino like chickens with their heads cut off _just_ to get us _together_?"

Riyu nodded.

"And taking Yami?"

Riyu shrugged. "I just wanted to torture him."

"_That_ I can understand…BUT THE REST?" he roared. "Come on! We're taking them and getting out of here! These fucking fangirls are insane! I hate them! I hate them _all_! Trying to get us together. That's total bullshit."

"If it's bullshit, why are you holding Joey's hand?" questioned Riyu haughtily.

Kaiba stared at their intertwined fingers. "Shut up!"

"It worked, didn't it?" she accused.

"I said shut up!"

Riyu through her fists up in the air. "Puppyshipping for the win!"

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>

**Now for the real mystery.**

**Who is Riyu?**

**Reizbar-Ookami, of course.**


	13. General

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The thirteenth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…GENERAL!<p>

* * *

><p><strong>General (Rated T)<strong>

"Seto? I'm gonna go take Fang outside," said Joey, holding his new puppy.

"Hm? Fine," replied Seto, his eyes never leaving his laptop. "I still don't understand why you named him after that hairy giant from Harry Potter."

"I keep tellin' ya that's Hagrid! H-A-G-R-I-D! Hagrid!"

"What is this, a spelling bee?"

"No! I'm just tellin' ya that that hairy giant ya keep goin' on about is Hagrid, not Fang! Fang is his dog!"

"Whatever," mumbled the brunet. "Just be careful out there. Raccoons will be out this time of night."

"Yeah, yeah," Joey muttered under his breath as he attached the leash he was holding to Fang's collar and walked out into the yard. He set Fang down and walked him around, flashlight in the other hand. "Go potty."

Fang growled and started sniffing the ground instead.

"Come on. Just go potty already. It's cold out here."

_Bang!_

Joey and Fang's heads shot up. "What the hell was that?" the blond voiced aloud, shining his flashlight in the direction of the sound. The narrow beam of light drifted over the yard until it landed on the iron shed in the back.

_BANG!_

The flashlight fell from Joey's hands as he and Fang bolted back inside the mansion.

* * *

><p><strong><em>The Following Morning<em>**

"I'm tellin' ya, there was bangin' goin' on in here last night. Both Fang and I heard it!" said Joey as he hid behind Seto, who was now standing in front of the iron shed.

The brunet sighed, but decided to humor his boyfriend. Shoving the doors of the shed open, he peered inside. "There's nothing here, Joey."

"Then what's that?"

"What?"

"That!"

"What, the scat?"

"…the what?"

"The raccoon feces over there?"

"Why didn't ya just say that in the first place?"

"Because it's called scat."

"Let's just call it raccoon shit, then!" Joey snapped.

"Never mind," said Seto upon closer inspection. "I don't think it belongs to a raccoon."

"And how do ya know that?"

"I just…do."

"What, ya got like a poop fetish or somethin'?"

"No! I like outdoor activities, okay?"

"…and part of that is knowin' what different poop looks like?" Just what kind of person was he dating.

"No—yes—just forget the whole damn thing!"

"Uh huh…wait, what the fuck is that?" Joey asked sounding alarmed. He pointed to a hole on the side of the shed.

"Something must have made the hole," Seto commented.

"From the inside?"

"That's what it seems like."

"What the hell could have done that?" Joey shrieked. If it could bust a hole in an iron shed, who knew what else it could do!

"I'm not sure. We'll just check things out tonight and see."

"_We_? What the hell do ya mean _we_?"

Seto just rolled his eyes in response.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Later That Night<em>**

Joey hid behind Seto as they peered into the shed, the pitiful beam from the flashlight illuminating nearly nothing. Seto let the light roam gradually throughout the shed until it settled on the metal shelf inside. Squinting, he leaned forward.

So did Joey. "Is that a—"

"—rat?" finished Seto. "Yes. And a large one at that." It was nearly the size of a small dog.

Suddenly, the rat lunged at them.

"Fuck!" Joey screamed, pushing Seto directly into the flying rat as he took off back toward the mansion. A resounding crash echoed through the air.

Seto found himself lying face first in the shed, the rat nowhere to be seen. Raising his head, he looked around until he found the flashlight. Grabbing it, he pulled it toward himself until something caught his eye.

A glowing pair of eyes.

It wasn't from a rat.

Or a raccoon.

"Fuck!" Seto shouted, scrambling away and racing back toward the mansion.

"Seto! What happened?" inquired a frantic Joey.

"What _happened_? You pushed me into a fucking shed and left me to die at the claws of some fucking monster! That's what happened!"

"…a monster?" Joey squeaked.

"Well…not in the literal sense, but I'm definitely having that shed demolished."

"But…what if that just pisses the monster off?"

"Then don't go outside."

"But what about when Fang needs to go potty?"

"Just…shut up. I'm going to bed," Seto said, feeling a headache coming on.

"Ya can't go to bed! There's a monster on the loose! Seto? Seto!"

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	14. Horror

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The fourteenth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…HORROR!<p>

I had to rewrite this because my flash drive was evil and my file was corrupted. I couldn't recover it. So this is a condensed version of the original. The first one was so much better. But I'm still too angry to put all that effort into this one.

* * *

><p><strong>Horror (Rated M)<strong>

_Thump!_

Mokuba's eyes shot open, staring into the darkness of his room. He glanced at the glowing red numbers of his alarm clock, which read 3:00 a.m. It was too early for anyone to be up, so what had made that sound?

_Thump! Thump!_

He bolted into a sitting position. The sound had been _much _louder that time, even closer.

Mokuba slid out from under the covers, his bare feet touching the cold floorboards. He tiptoed toward where he thought the thumping sound had come from. Was it a rat or something in the walls?

_Thump! Thump! Thump!_

The picture hanging on his wall seemed to levitate, like someone—or something—was trying to lift it.

_Crash!_

It plummeted to the floor. The glass from the frame shattered into tiny pieces where it landed.

Holding back a yelp, he scurried back to his bed, yanking the covers over himself. After a few moments of silence, Mokuba released the breath he'd been holding. He supposed whatever had been there was now gone.

_THUMP!_

"Ah!" he screamed, pulling the blankets even tighter over himself. If he couldn't see it, it couldn't see him, right?

* * *

><p>"Mokuba, what are you doing?" asked Seto when he spotted Mokuba with a broom.<p>

"Um…nothing!" he said, plastering a smile on his face to hide the circles under his eyes. He hadn't slept a wink last night. And he wasn't about to tell his brother he thought his room was haunted.

Seto approached the small boy when he saw the smile fade away. "Are you feeling alright? You look tired," he observed, placing a hand to his brother's forehead.

"I'm fine, Seto. Just up late playing video games."

"Hm…don't stay up so late next time, all right?"

"All right, Seto."

"And be careful when you play. Then you won't have any more of _those _accidents," he said, indicating the broken glass.

"Yes, Seto," replied Mokuba as his brother left his room. "I'll be careful."

* * *

><p><em>Squeak!<em>

"Not again," Mokuba hissed under his breath. He was currently huddled underneath his blankets, a flashlight in hand. Steeling himself, he peeked out from under his sheets.

It was 3:00 a.m.

Again.

This _was_ paranormal!

_Squeak! Squeak!_

It was getting louder, too! Why was this happening to him?

_Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!_

That definitely wasn't a rat. Or a mouse, for that matter. It sounded bigger, scarier.

Mokuba shuffled back under his blankets, flashlight huddled against his chest as he listened intently for any more noises. All was quiet, so he relaxed, exhaling slowly.

_SQUEAK!_

"Aah!" he cried, thrashing in his bed. All that accomplished was losing the flashlight and ensnaring himself in his sheets.

* * *

><p>"I think my bedroom's haunted," Mokuba blurted at the kitchen table.<p>

"Haunted?" Joey gasped, squeezing the carton of milk he held over his cereal. Milk spilled over the rim of the bowl and onto the table.

"Mokuba," Seto began as he tried to rescue his furniture from Joey, "where is this coming from?"

"I've been hearing noises at night."

"What kinda noises?" Joey asked.

"Thumps…squeaks," he explained.

"It could be a mouse. I'll call the exterminator later today to have it checked out," replied Seto nonchalantly.

"A _mouse _wouldn't make a picture fly off my wall and hit the floor!" Mokuba shouted.

"What?" Joey screeched, flinging his bowl of cereal across the room.

"Damn it, Joey!" Seto hissed. "And you, too, Mokuba! You're spouting nonsense!"

"But, Seto! It's true!"

The brunet rubbed his face in agitation. "No part of this mansion is haunted. Your imagination has gotten the best of you because of these video games you keep playing."

"But—"

"I've heard enough! No more video games for the rest of the week. And no T.V. either. Understood?"

Mokuba sighed, knowing that when his brother put his foot down, nothing could be said to sway him. "Yes, Seto."

* * *

><p>"<em>Ooh!<em>"

Mokuba flinched as he scrambled into a sitting position. He turned his flashlight on and shone it around the room. There was nothing there.

He looked over at his alarm. The time read—yet again—3:00 a.m.

"_Ooh! Ooh!_"

"There really is a ghost," he whimpered. Why was this happening to him? And why was it only happening to him?

"_Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!_"

"Go away, go away, go away, go away," he muttered over and over again. After a short time, all was quiet, save for Mokuba's mumbling.

But then he, too, stopped his ranting so that he could bask in the stillness in the air.

_THUMP! _

_SQUEAK! _

"_OOH!_"

"AAAH!" Mokuba screamed, jumping out of his bed. He ran for his bedroom door and threw it open. His feet slapped the wooden floorboards as he fled for his brother's room next door.

Ripping the door open, he screamed again.

"EWWW!"

"Mokuba?"

"Mokuba!"

Joey kicked Seto off of him. The brunet landed with a thud as he quickly fetched the comforter and wrapped it around himself, while Joey tried to make himself look at least a little bit decent with the sheets.

"You guys were having sex!" Mokuba accused. "Ew!"

Then it dawned on him.

"The noises were you two! The thumping, the squeaking, the oohing! It was all you!"

"Now, Mokuba," Seto started, only to be cut off.

"No! You knew what I was hearing was you guys! You knew!"

"Honestly, I thought you'd be asleep by this time," Seto muttered under his breath. But both Mokuba and Joey heard.

"What?" Joey screeched. "After he told ya about the hauntin' thing, ya knew it was us and ya still did me? He heard us!"

"Do you know how horrifying that is?" Mokuba seethed. "Three days! I've been hearing you two have sex for three days! I thought I was being haunted by ghosts! But now I'll be haunted by the images of you two having sex!"

"Mokuba, I'm sorry."

"Sorry won't pay for my therapy!"

"I-I'll get you therapy if that's what you really want," said Seto, trying to make the best out of this embarrassing situation.

"And a new room. I want the one at the very end of the hall. Away from you, too!" he yelled. "I can't believe it was you two having sex!"

Seto finally moved back onto the bed once Mokuba left. His hand reached for Joey, but the blond only smacked him.

"Oh, hell no!" Joey stated, slapping the brunet.

"What the hell was that for?"

"That was for knowin' he heard us, but ya still wanted to have sex!" he ranted before punching him in the nose. "And that's for getting' all grabby after Mokuba caught us havin' sex, ya fuckin' horny bastard!"

"I dink you broke by nose."

"Oh, did I?" he said in mock concern. "Well, let me break your dick! It'll take your mind off your damn nose!"

Seto scrambled away from him.

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	15. Tragedy

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The fifteenth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…TRAGEDY!<p>

And before people begin telling me that this isn't tragedy, here's a little side note. Most people believe tragedies always result in death. That does not always make a tragedy. Tragedies can also result in the bad guy being the winner in the end. In other words, evil triumphs over good instead of the other way around. Or the main character suffers extreme sorrow in some way.

I hope this clears things up for people. Read on!

* * *

><p><strong>Tragedy (Rated M)<strong>

_Domino – Year 1812_

"You can't do this!" screamed a woman.

"It must be done! In order to save ourselves from the Beast, sacrifices must be made!" dictated the leader of them all.

"But they are only children!" shouted another.

"It does not matter. We're doing this now!"

Everyone watched helplessly as their leader, as well as a few of his men, grabbed their torches and headed for the small house near the edge of town, with all of the town's children trapped inside. Slowly, they set fire to the house, the cries and screams from the town's children rising into the air with the smoke and flames.

* * *

><p><em>Domino – Year 1912<em>

"If we do this, all is lost."

"I know. But it may be the only way to save us—all of us—and our future generations from the Beast."

"We cannot simply burn our city to the ground and our children, too."

"We can always have more children. But we must put an end to this. All of this."

"But if we destroy the city, how will our future generations know what is to come when the Beast arrives?"

"If we succeed, they won't have to."

* * *

><p><em>Domino – Year 2012 – August 15 <em>

_Day 1_

Serenity shot up in bed, having the sudden urge to cough. She grabbed a tissue from her bedside table and began having a coughing fit.

"Are ya okay in there?" asked Joey after knocking.

"I'm fine," Serenity replied quickly. Her heart had quickened its pace when she noticed blood in her tissue. She was coughing up blood?

"Ya sure? Ya don't sound too good."

"Really, I'm fine." There was no need to worry her brother. He had plenty to worry about already. "I'll be out in a minute."

"Okay."

When she heard Joey walk away from her door, she got out of bed, feeling a bit shaky in the process. But she shook it off. Getting dressed, she made sure to flush the bloody tissue down the toilet before heading into the kitchen.

"Can ya believe this shit?" Joey said upon her entering.

"What?" replied Serenity when she spotted Joey's eyes glued to the television screen.

"Some kid's gone missin'. The parents said he went to bed, but when they tried to wake him up this mornin', he was just gone. They just put out an alert."

Serenity looked at the picture of the boy plastered on the T.V. It was Chiro Makio. And he was one of her classmates.

Suddenly, the urge to cough came upon her again. Excusing herself, she rushed to the bathroom, where she coughed up more blood.

"Serenity?" Joey asked, horrified by what he saw. Then she passed out.

* * *

><p><em>Domino – Year 2012 – August 16<em>

_Day 2_

Mokuba clenched the sides of his laptop while he watched T.V. with his brother during breakfast. Another child had gone missing. A girl. Her name was Aera Rose. And she was one of Mokuba's classmates, much like Chiro Makio had been.

She'd disappeared the same way. Her parents had sent her to bed, and the following morning…she was just gone.

"Are you all right, Mokuba?" asked Seto, looking concerned.

"Huh? Uh…I guess?"

"Is that a question?"

Mokuba sighed. "It's just…I'm scared, Seto."

That caught the brunet's attention. "Of what?"

"You know those two kids who've gone missing the past two days?"

"Yes."

"They're my classmates," he explained. "Doesn't that seem kind of strange to you? Two of my classmates in two days have disappeared. Not to mention Serenity's really sick."

"The mutt's sister is ill then?" Seto inquired.

Mokuba cringed at the nickname. "Yeah," he replied softly, his voice catching. "She, uh…Joey found her coughing up blood yesterday. And the doctors don't know what's wrong. I'm just really scared. She's my best friend. I don't want anything bad to happen to her. And I'm just…afraid."

Seto got up and pulled his brother into his arms. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you," he said.

_PSHSSHKSDKSHSHSKSKDHSSSHHH!_

"What the hell?" Seto got up and went over to the T.V., which had suddenly gone snowy as if the channel had gone out. He picked up the remote and turned to a different channel. And another, and another. But everything was snowy.

He shut off the T.V. and turned back toward Mokuba; however, he paused when he noticed Mokuba's ashen face.

"Mokuba?" he began cautiously.

"Look," his brother replied, pointing at the screen of his laptop.

Seto stepped behind him to see, needing a double take as he did so. The laptop's screen was snowy, much like the T.V. had been. But that wasn't possible…was it?

Placing his hands on Mokuba's shoulders, he gave a gentle squeeze. "I want you to stay home from school today…all right?"

The small boy nodded fervently, unnerved by all the strange things that were going on. Just what on earth was happening?

* * *

><p><em>Domino – Year 2012 – August 17<em>

_Day 3_

Another girl had gone missing. And Joey definitely knew it was one of Serenity's classmates. Her name was Kiki Thomas. Both girls spent a good majority of the time either texting or chatting online.

But now she had disappeared, just like the others.

And he was going to have to tell Serenity.

_Crash!_

He jumped when he heard the glass break in the other room. But when a sob accompanied it, he pushed all his fears aside and made his way toward the sound.

When he reached the living room, he found Serenity sitting on the floor surrounded by glass.

"Serenity?"

"How did I get here?" she asked suddenly, eyes seeming blank.

"What?"

"How did I get here? I don't remember how I got here."

"Here in the living room?"

"How did I get here?" she screamed before breaking down and crying. "I don't remember how I got here. How did I get here?"

Joey raced toward her and knelt by her side, careful to avoid the glass. He placed his arms around her, trying to comfort her as he hummed.

But then she began coughing up more blood.

Noticing she had a towel clenched in her hand, he fumbled for it. Bringing it to her mouth, he rubbed her back as she coughed. "It's okay. I'm here. You're fine," he said. But deep down, he felt that it was untrue.

And that began to break his heart.

* * *

><p><em>Domino – Year 2012 – August 18<em>

_Day 4_

_Creak!_

_Mokuba's eyes popped open when he heard his bedroom door creak. Pulling the covers down from over his head, he gazed at his doorway._

_In it stood what looked like the silhouette of a man. A long and lanky man at that._

_Mokuba tried to scream, but no sound came forth. It was as if he were mute._

_The man then took a step forward, which only made Mokuba shrink backward. Then he raised his hand out to the small boy. And when Mokuba made to jump out of the bed and run, an unseen hand wrapped itself in his hair and yanked him back, holding him firmly in place._

_Mokuba thrashed in the bed, but the hand holding his hair just clenched more firmly._

_Suddenly, the man rushed toward him—_

"AAH!" Mokuba screamed as he shot up in bed, his heart racing.

"Mokuba?" Seto shouted as he burst into the room. When he just saw his brother sitting up in bed, he felt himself calm.

"S-Seto?"

"It's okay, Mokuba. You were just having a nightmare," said the brunet as he sat next to his brother on the bed.

"No. I felt it. He wouldn't let go. He's coming for me, Seto. He's going to get me," Mokuba began muttering hysterically.

"Mokuba, no one is going to get you. Everything that's happened over the past few days has just gotten to you, that's all," said Seto. "How about I stay here for the night? We'll watch a little bit of T.V. for awhile to take your mind off things then go back to sleep, all right?"

Not waiting for a response, Seto grabbed the remote and turned in the T.V., only for it to land on a news channel. It showed that another child had disappeared. Another boy…named Chris Colton.

"I know him," Mokuba said quietly. "I sit next to him in math. Well, not anymore, I guess."

Seto immediately shut off the T.V. "Let's just go to bed."

"It doesn't matter what you do. He'll still come for me."

"Who?" questioned Seto, sounding unnerved. "Who'll come for you?"

"…the Beast."

* * *

><p><em>Domino – Year 2012 – August 19<em>

_Day 5_

Joey knocked on Serenity's door before pushing it open and stepping inside. He gasped when he saw the condition of the room.

Somehow his sister had gotten hold of a marker or something, because every inch of her wall space was covered in circles with Xs through them.

"Serenity?" Joey started, trying to get the marker away from her. She just pulled back and continued drawing the symbols on her wall. "Come on, Ren. Let's get ya away from there and into bed, okay? Come on."

He was finally able to pry the marker away from her fingers. Helping her up, he led her toward the bed and assisted her under the covers. Kissing her forehead, he said, "I'll see ya in the mornin', okay?"

She didn't reply, but closed her eyes and turned on her side instead.

Sighing, Joey left the room, but not before ensuring that the door was open a crack…just in case. Walking down the hallway, he headed for his own bedroom until he heard a slam. Spinning around, he noticed that Serenity's door had slammed shut.

Quickly making his way for the door, he turned the knob, only to find it locked. He banged on the door. "Serenity! Let me in! Serenity!"

He received no answer, so he began ramming into the door in order to bust it open. When he succeeded, he stumbled into the room. "Serenity?"

She wasn't there.

"Serenity?" he cried anxiously. He scrambled about the room, looking everywhere. But she wasn't there. She was gone.

Racing out of the room, he hurried for the phone. Once he got to it, however, it rang. Picking it up, he answered it.

"_Joey!_" came a panicky voice from the other line. It was Yami. "_Serenity's in trouble! She's—_"

"She's gone," Joey cried, breaking down into sobs. "She's gone."

Yami's voice hitched on the other line. He'd been too late. But there was still time to save someone else.

* * *

><p><em>Domino – Year 2012 – August 20<em>

_Day 6_

Serenity had disappeared. She'd been the fifth child to disappear within five days. And after receiving an urgent call from Yami, Seto wasn't going to take any chances when it came to Mokuba.

Which was why the two of them were standing outside of the Game Shop.

"Let's go, Mokuba," urged Seto as he guided his listless brother inside.

"You're here," said Yugi, sounding surprised. "Anyway, we're in the living room."

"…we?"

"Me, Yami, Grandpa, and…and Joey."

"Oh," Seto replied, unsure of what to say. "How…is he?"

"He's holding it together as best as he can," said Yugi quietly as they made their way into the living room. "I think the possibility of saving Mokuba is the only thing keeping him going."

Seto spotted Joey sitting o the couch, staring off into space. He didn't even acknowledge his or Mokuba's presence, let alone anyone else.

"Good. You're here," said Yami.

"Why are we here? Do you know what's going on?" questioned Seto.

"I'm afraid I do," replied Yami. "But you also need to believe it's true. There is magic involved in this."

Magic. Normally the brunet would scoff at the idea, but after everything that had happened, he was ready to do anything to protect Mokuba.

"So what's going on?"

Yami took a deep breath. "There is a curse on Domino. Every one-hundred years, this creature called the Beast comes. Over a period of seven days, he takes seven children. They are never seen or heard from again.

"As the legend goes, when the Beast arrives, the Domino children exhibit a series of symptoms. They cough up blood, suffer memory loss, diarrhea, vomiting, nightmares, drawing certain symbols, and in more recent times, faulty technology."

"Where did you get all this from?"

"That would be me," said Grandpa, pulling out what looked like a singed book. "This is a diary, one that was found during the construction of Domino City in 1912. It catalogues a catastrophic event, one where the townspeople burned the city and its children to the ground in order to destroy the Beast.

"The knowledge was passed down over the centuries, but in 1912 they believed that by destroying the city, they would eradicate the Beast. In doing so, they felt the future generations would never have to worry about the Beast ever again. But it's obviously not so."

Seto would have loved nothing more than to disbelieve all of it. But as soon as they had spoken of the Beast, the brunet felt it must have been true. Mokuba had referred to it as the same thing.

"And you think it's coming after Mokuba?" he asked.

"Yes," said Yami solemnly. "He's exhibited some symptoms, correct?"

"…to an extent, but—"

"No buts, Kaiba," Joey interceded. "We have a chance to save Mokuba here. We need to save Mokuba."

Seto sighed. "And how do we do that?"

"The Beast is said to be weak against fire," said Yami.

The brunet glared. "It's not like we can burn the city down."

"I know that! But we can use it to ward off the Beast. And if we keep watch over Mokuba, especially after the seventh day has passed, he'll be all right."

"And the Beast will just go away. That's it?"

"We assume that's it," said Grandpa.

"But it's worth a shot," added Joey. "Losin'…losin' Serenity is…ya have no idea what this feels like. I can't…I hafta save Mokuba. I couldn't save her, but we can try and save him."

"Fine. We'll do it your way," Seto conceded. What other choice did he have?

"Excuse me," Mokuba blurted before racing off. He burst into the bathroom and shut the door. By the sounds of it, he was exhibiting another symptom.

"Oh, no," Yugi said suddenly. "Another child's gone missing."

Everyone turned their attention toward the T.V. Another boy had gone missing. Kyle Kyoto. And he was also a classmate of Mokuba's. They'd done a science project together last month.

Six children, six days.

They had one more day to go. Then it would all be over.

* * *

><p><em>Domino – Year 2012 – August 21<em>

_Day 7_

Nothing had happened. No child had been announced missing in the news. Nothing. And they had about an hour left until midnight. Then the seventh day would be over.

Mokuba was curled up in Seto's lap sound asleep. Yami, Yugi, Joey, and Grandpa were gathered around the brunet's living room, anxiously waiting for something to happen.

If it even would.

They'd surrounded themselves with lit candles, set a fire in the fireplace, and kept watch, all in hopes of saving Mokuba.

It seemed as if all of their preventative measures had worked, because nothing happened at all. And when midnight came and went, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"I think I can put him to bed now," announced Seto, picking Mokuba up in his arms.

"It seems we've succeeded," said Yami.

"Yeah," agreed Joey. He walked up to Mokuba and brushed the hair out of his eyes. "Take care of him, Kaiba."

"I will," he replied. When it looked like Joey was content with that, he walked upstairs and toward Mokuba's bedroom.

As he put his brother into bed, he smiled before kissing his forehead. "Goodnight, Mokuba," he said before stepping out of the room and closing the door behind him.

Seto went down the stairs and veered toward the kitchen. He froze, however, when he spotted the clock. It read 11:16 p.m.

Whipping out his cell phone, he checked its time. It also read 11:16 p.m.

The clock in the living room was wrong! There was still time before midnight!

"Mokuba!" Seto shouted as he raced up the stairs.

He clambered down the hallway until he reached his brother's door. Ripping it open, he charged into the room.

But Mokuba was gone. He was gone.

And they had failed to keep him safe.

The Beast had claimed its seven victims once more.

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	16. Parody

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The sixteenth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…PARODY!<p>

Before you read, I need to clarify a few things. The plot for this genre will be an over exaggeration of what it would be like if sex education was banned from being taught in schools.

Furthermore, after having such a thing happen for all of these characters' school years, their final year of high school finds them with having a sex education class. They discover all their misconceptions about sex and where babies come from.

Enjoy.

* * *

><p><strong>Parody (Rated M)<strong>

"Today, we're going to talk about where babies come from," began Ms. Nada. "Now who can tell me what they know?"

Yugi raised his hand.

"Yes?"

"The stork brings them," Yugi said cheerfully.

Ms. Nada's face began to twitch. "The…stork?"

"Yeah! It was on Dumbo! And Disney _never_ lies!"

"Mutou, you're an idiot," snapped Kaiba. But he did look quite amused.

"I am not!"

"Please. The stork is just a made up fable to tell children because parents are too afraid to talk to their children about where babies come from."

"Oh, yeah? Then where do they come from then?" Yugi taunted.

"Space pods, of course," Kaiba stated matter-of-factly.

"We come from space?" exclaimed Yugi.

"Like…the space pods from DBZ?" asked Tristan.

Kaiba stared at him blankly. "What's DBZ?"

"Dragon Ball Z?"

"…"

"With Goku?"

"…"

"He came from the sky in a pod and he had a monkey tail?"

"…I have no idea what you're talking about."

"How do you not know what DBZ is?"

"Probably the same reason why ya guys don't know where babies come from," interceded Joey. You couldn't be from the streets and _not _know these things.

Ms. Nada zoned in on Joey. "You know where babies come from?"

"Yeah."

"Would you care to tell the class?"

"No."

"But—"

"I ain't a teacher."

Ms. Nada sighed. This was going to be a long lecture.

* * *

><p>They'd finally gotten through where babies came from, and Ms. Nada believed the students had grasped the concept well.<p>

Until Joey opened his big mouth.

"The whole 'when mommy and daddy love each other very much' thing is all crap," said Joey, chin resting in his hand.

Ms. Nada's face twitched again. "Excuse me?"

"Women can get pregnant if they're raped," he said.

"That is so not true!" started Tea. "My mom said that if it's a legitimate rape, a woman can't get pregnant!"

"What?" Ms. Nada and Joey deadpanned.

"It's true! If a woman is being raped, her reproductive system has ways of shutting itself down so she can't get pregnant. That means anyone who says they were raped and are pregnant are liars."

"It doesn't work like that, Tea," said Joey.

"It definitely does not," echoed Ms. Nada. "There is no scientific proof of that."

"Yes, it does! My mother told me! It must be true!"

"Tea," Joey sighed exasperatedly. "That's like sayin' ya can't get an STD from oral sex."

"An STD?" started Yugi.

"String Theory Department," answered Kaiba.

"That's not—" began Joey but he was cut off by Tristan.

"What's oral sex?"

"My mom said that's when you talk about sex," said Tea.

With that, Joey grabbed his things and got up.

"Where are you going?" hissed Ms. Nada.

"I can't take it anymore. Good luck, teach!"

"No! Don't leave me!"

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>

**I hope you enjoyed the exaggerations. **

**But the sad thing is that not teaching sex education does happen in some schools. And sometimes the knowledge is limited in sex education, meaning they are abstinence only classes. **

**I personally feel that it is irresponsible to not teach this in schools, especially when there are some parents who don't teach their children about sex and STDs.**

**So I suggest that if you have not been properly educated.**

**Just go to Kids Health dot org ("Kids" and "Health" go together with a "period" at the end and then "org" right after)**

**There is information there for Parents, Kids, Teens, and Educators. The info is extensive and very helpful; everything you might need for healthy living.**

**Please check it out!**


	17. Adventure

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The seventeenth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…ADVENTURE!<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Adventure (Rated T)<strong>

Joey cackled as he headed for the Game Shop, prized possession in his hands. "Hey, Yugi! Look what I got!" he announced as he entered the shop.

Yugi head popped up over the counter, giving his friend his full attention. However, when he spotted the mischievous grin on the blond's face, the small teen became suspicious. "What did you do?"

Joey looked affronted. "Huh? What makes ya think I did somethin'?"

"You don't normally come in here smiling after school. What did you do?"

The blond huffed and walked over to the counter. "Nothin' gets by ya, does it?"

"Not really, no. So what did you do?"

"I went home, ate leftover pizza, stopped by Kaiba Corp. and maybe…stoleKaiba'sdeck," he finished off quickly.

"You…what?"

"I accidentally stole Kaiba's deck."

"…"

"What? I did!"

"…"

"…say somethin'."

"YOU STOLE KAIBA'S DECK? ARE YOU INSANE?"

"Maybe just a little."

"WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WHEN HE FINDS OUT?"

Joey stared at him blankly. "Ya know, I didn't really think that far ahead."

Yugi slapped a hand to his forehead. "Joey," he sighed.

"Oh, shit!" Joey cried, realization dawning on him. "Kaiba's gonna find out I stole his deck!"

"I just—"

"He's gonna kill me!"

Yugi watched as Joey bolted from the shop.

* * *

><p>Joey was starting the freak out. It was getting dark and he had yet to get back to Kaiba Corp. Stupid stomach. Always growling when he had something important to do.<p>

But when Kaiba Corp. came within sight, he sighed a little bit in relief. He was almost there!

Which meant he would soon be parting with Kaiba's deck. Growing curious, he pulled the deck from his jacket pocket and began fingering through the cards. It didn't seem like that great of a deck upon first glance, but Kaiba definitely made it one.

Putting the cards back together in one neat little stack, he was about to put the deck back in his pocket when something swooped down next to him.

"What the—AAH!"

In order to fend himself off from the creature that had flown so closely to him, Joey tossed the deck, which said creature caught in its mouth and flew off with.

Joey stood there dumbly as he watched Kaiba's deck disappear.

* * *

><p>"Yugi!" Joey screeched, bursting into the Game Shop. "Kaiba's deck is gone! That thing took it!"<p>

"Thing? What thing?" Yugi asked, stunned by how frantic Joey was acting. "Tell me what happened."

"I was walkin' to Kaiba Corp. all innocently and stuff when this huge bat came outta nowhere and stole Kaiba's deck!"

"…a bat?"

"Yeah."

"Stole Kaiba's deck?"

"Yeah!"

"Joey, if you lost Kaiba's deck, just say so. You don't have to create a story—an unbelievable story—about it."

"Yugi, I am not makin' this up! It was a bat!"

"Joey, bats aren't really that big. And I don't think it could carry off a deck. I don't even know why it would want to if it could."

"Look, this bat was huge! It had giant wings and everything! Sure, it kinda looked like a flying dog, but I'm tellin' ya that it's real!"

Yugi had never seen Joey get this worked up before. Maybe there was some truth to what he said, but he really doubted Joey had seen a bat.

* * *

><p>It was official. Joey might have seen a flying bat, if Yugi's internet search was any indication. After about an hour of searching through bats, they'd come across what was called a flying fox. And according to Joey, that was what he had seen.<p>

"I told ya I was tellin' the truth."

"Just because we found a giant bat online doesn't mean you actually saw one, Joey."

_Bang! Scratch! Bang! Scratch!_

"What the heck was that?"

"I think it came from the roof," said Yugi. He hesitated.

_Scratch! Scratch!_

"Maybe we should check it out," suggested Joey.

"You mean go on the roof?"

"Yeah. Get some flashlights…and a stick. A really big stick."

* * *

><p>Once they were out of the hatch that led to the roof, Joey shone the flashlight, trying to spot whatever had made the sound.<p>

"Uh…Yugi?"

"What?" replied the small teen, his head poking out of the hatch.

"Do ya see what I see?"

"…THERE REALLY IS A BAT!"

"Shh!" Joey hissed. "Gimme the stick. What the—Yugi! This is an umbrella!"

"We don't have a stick!"

"So ya expect me to fend off a giant bat with an umbrella?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

"Yeah. A stick!"

"For the last time, we don't have a stick!"

"I would've settled for a bat. Ha. A bat for a bat. That's fun—"

"Joey!"

"Right. Sorry. Okay, I'm goin' in."

"…"

"Any moment now."

Yugi shoved him forward.

"Ack!" Joey cried. He lost his footing and landed in front of the bat, which was hanging upside down from the back of the shop's sign. It opened its eyes and looked at him.

Joey fumbled to his feet and opened the umbrella, shaking it at the bat.

The bat didn't move.

The blond closed the umbrella and stared.

The bat still didn't move.

He poked the bat with the umbrella.

Nothing.

Slightly disappointed that he wouldn't be able to show off his videogame-esque fighting skills against the nocturnal creature, he shone the flashlight around the roof. And then he spotted Kaiba's deck.

"Would ya look at that?" the blond muttered.

He knelt down and grabbed the deck.

The bat opened its wings and screeched.

"Oh, for the love of—_really_?" Joey screamed when the bat began fighting him for the deck.

The blond swung the umbrella at the bat, which only made it grab the object in its mouth, tearing the umbrella to shreds. Throwing the remnants of the umbrella back at the bat, Joey bolted for the hatch, Kaiba's deck grasped firmly in his hands.

But when he got to the hatch, he found it locked. "Yugi!" he shouted as he banged on the hatch. "Lemme in! Come on! Hurry!"

After a moment's pause, the hatch flew open and Joey tumbled inside. Yugi quickly closed the hatch and locked it…again.

"Some friend _you_ are," Joey panted.

"I let you in, didn't I?"

"I just fought a giant bat! By myself!"

"It was scary and almost as big as I am! What could I do?"

"Maybe ya got a point there," Joey said, collapsing on the floor.

"Uh…Joey?"

"Yeah, Yug'?"

"Where's Kaiba's deck?"

"Ffffffffffff!"

* * *

><p>He was bloodied and bruised, but he had fought bravely and won. And now, Kaiba's deck rested proudly on the brunet's desk.<p>

Sure, it kind of looked like it had gone through a hurricane, but all cards were accounted for. Now all he had to do was wait for Kaiba to see it.

Which was why he was hiding out in the hallway and not in the classroom.

"Mutt, what the hell did you do to my deck?"

Joey shrieked and spun around. "Kaiba?"

"No, it's the boogeyman."

"Same thing," he muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothin'," Joey responded with a slight laugh. "Uh, what was it ya wanted?"

"What did you do to my deck?"

"What makes ya think I did anythin' to it?"

Kaiba glared at him. "One, my cameras caught you sneaking off with it at Kaiba Corp., but I have no idea how you got passed security in the first place."

"Pfft, donuts."

"Don't start with me," Kaiba snapped. "Two, I saw you sneak into class with my deck and leave without it. And it didn't look to be in very good shape," he continued, inching closer to Joey.

The blond gulped when the brunet's nose was nearly touching his. "All the cards are still there."

"They had better be."

"They are."

"Good."

Joey sighed.

"However," Kaiba started. A dramatic pause followed. "I _will_ get you back for this. Mark my words, I _will _get you back."

And with that, Kaiba stormed off.

Kaiba was going to get him back for ruining his deck?

"Well, fuck," Joey muttered. "I shoulda let that bat kill me." He'd fight a hundred bats if it meant not enduring the wrath of Kaiba.

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	18. Suspense

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The eighteenth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…SUSPENSE!<p>

This is actually a sequel to Adventure.

* * *

><p><strong>Suspense (Rated M)<strong>

Joey was a nervous wreck when he got to school. Just the thought of what Kaiba might to do him sent shivers down his spine. Why had he taken Kaiba's deck? He was such an idiot.

Glancing around the crowded hallway, Joey quickly made his way to his locker. Getting it open he grabbed his books, shut his locker, turned around, and smacked into Kaiba's chest.

"Eek!" the blond squeaked.

Kaiba stared down at him and just…kept staring. He didn't move, didn't say anything; he just stared.

And then Kaiba walked away.

Joey had to sigh in relief at that, but it made him wonder.

What the hell was Kaiba going to do to him?

* * *

><p>"Joey?"<p>

"Ack!"

Yugi jumped nearly five feet in the air when his blond friend screamed, which seemed to be for no reason. "Are…you okay?"

"Yeah…no. I dunno, Yug'," said Joey, looking quite disheveled. "Kaiba's kinda freakin' me out."

"What did he do?"

"That's just it! Nothin'! He hasn't done a damn thing except stare at me all day! It's gettin' freaky!"

"Did you try asking him about it?"

"…no."

"Why not?"

"I'm still afraid of what he might do."

"Because of the whole deck thing?"

"Yeah."

"Just…go talk to him. It's lunch, so you have plenty of time before our next class," said Yugi.

"Okay," replied the blond unsurely. "Will ya come with me? Yugi?"

But his friend had already left.

* * *

><p>Joey peeked into the school library, his eyes panning the entire room until they landed on Kaiba. He was sitting in a large chair, his attention focused solely on the book in his hands.<p>

Swallowing loudly—which earned him a shush from the librarian—he slowly made his way up to Kaiba. There, he nonchalantly collapsed in a chair next to the brunet. It sank slightly from his weight.

"I didn't think they allowed dogs in libraries," said Kaiba, breaking the silence. His eyes never left his book.

"Shut up, Kaiba," Joey growled.

The brunet raised his head to look at him. "What do you want?"

Fidgeting, he replied, "To talk."

Kaiba stared at him blankly for a few seconds. "…to me?"

"Well, duh!"

"And why do you want to talk to me of all people? Don't you have friends for that?"

This was going to be harder then he thought. "I wanna talk to ya about what you've been doin' to me today."

Now Kaiba was confused. "Excuse me?"

"You've been starin' at me _all_ day! What's with that? Ya haven't said a word to me until now. And you're actin' like ya have no idea what I'm talkin' about!"

_Well, crap_, Kaiba thought to himself. He thought he'd been more discreet.

"Are ya plottin' my death or somethin'?" Joey thought he might as well ask.

"Why would I plot your death?" Kaiba asked, confusion quite evident in his voice this time.

Joey blinked a few times. "Because I…took…your deck?"

"I had completely forgotten about that," Kaiba deadpanned.

He had? "So ya weren't plottin' my death?"

"No."

Now it was Joey's turn to be confused. "Then why the hell have ya been starin' at me all day?"

"It was for other reasons than plotting your death."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means," said Kaiba as he rose from his chair, "that I have different intentions toward you."

"And that means?"

The brunet knelt down next to Joey and stared him straight in the eyes. "_That _means…I intend to make you mine."

The blond paused. "Say what now?"

"I've thought about this for quite some time. You're mine. End of discussion."

With that, Kaiba got up and left.

Joey continued to sit in his chair. He stared at the book Kaiba had left on the table, questions tormenting his mind. But they all led to the same overall question.

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

* * *

><p>"Did you talk to him?" Yugi asked Joey right after school.<p>

The blond jumped. Why was Yugi making him jump so much? He was just Yugi. "Yeah."

"What did he say?" the small teen urged as they started leaving the school grounds.

Joey _really _didn't want to get into it. There was still an unfinished conversation between him and Kaiba and the suspense was killing him. "Ya know, the usual. He called me a dog and stuff."

"Stop barking up his tree and he won't insult you," announced Duke and he and Tristan caught up with them.

"Shut up, Duke," Joey sighed in aggravation.

"Aw, did I make the doggy mad?"

"Just leave me alone!" the blond snapped. "Sorry, Yug', I gotta run."

Before Yugi could say anything, Joey had run off.

* * *

><p>"Stupid Duke," Joey mumbled to himself as he took a shortcut through the park on his way home. He <em>did <em>have plans to hang out with his friends at the Game Shop after school, but when Duke decided to bring up the dog jokes, he just didn't want to deal with it.

He was tired of it.

Spotting a bench, Joey plopped himself into it, dropping his bag on the ground. He brought his knees up to his chest, wrapped his arms around them, and sighed. Could he not go a _day_ when he wasn't insulted?

"What's wrong, mutt?"

Joey groaned. "Not now, Kaiba. Leave me alone."

But the brunet decided to ignore that last part. He sat down next to the blond and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "You're definitely barking a different tune since earlier."

"Would ya cut it out with the dog crap? I'm not a dog! But it doesn't look like you _or _Duke realize that! I hate it! Did ya ever think it makes me feel like crap?" Joey shouted at the brunet. He cursed himself when he started feeling tears sting his eyes, so he looked away.

Kaiba bristled. What the hell was Devlin think he was playing at? He wasn't supposed to mess with Joey. Period! "Devlin insulted you?"

The blond was perturbed by Kaiba's sharp tone. "…yeah."

"He insulted you using _dog_ references?"

"He always does, especially when he made me dress as a dog. I bet ya got a kick outta that, right?" the blond snapped.

Kaiba blinked. "When did _this_ happen?"

"It was after he beat me at that dice game and I was supposed to be his servant for a week. He made me dress in a dog suit and told me to bark and stuff. How could ya _not _know?"

"You were his servant for a week?" Kaiba roared.

"Well, not really. After Yugi beat him, I didn't have to."

"Why didn't you tell me this?" the brunet demanded.

Joey shrank back, his eyes widening. "Why would I tell ya that?"

"Because _you_ belong to _me_," he ground out.

The blond swallowed nervously. "Um…and what's that mean?"

"It means that if _anyone_ bothers you, bullies you, or even _looks_ at you the wrong way, you tell me and I will take care of it."

Joey still wasn't grasping it. "Huh?"

Kaiba leaned in toward the blond's face. "You are mine to bother, to bully, to look at. No one else has that right. Only me."

A glare came to Joey's face. "And who gave ya that right?"

"I did. You are mine," Kaiba repeated, cupping Joey's chin. "Do you understand that?"

"No."

"You're making this difficult."

"_Me_? You're the one not makin' any sense!"

Suddenly, Kaiba kissed him, stunning Joey motionless. When the brunet pulled away, he asked, "Does that clear things up for you?"

Did it clear things up? Hell no! If anything, it just made things more complicated. "You just…what did…huh?"

Kaiba sighed. "Why do you have to be so dense?"

That struck a nerve. "Dense? _Dense_? You're tellin' me that I'm yours, and only ya have the right to bully, bother, and look at me! _Then_ ya go and kiss me! How does that make _me_ dense?"

The brunet seemed to ponder this for a moment. "I suppose you have a point."

"…I do?"

"I could have been a little more direct."

"Ya could've? How?"

"I could have kissed you first and avoided all of this confusion," Kaiba replied.

At this, Joey blushed, remembering the sudden kiss. "Um…about that. Why did ya do it?"

"For the love of—do I need to draw a fucking picture? I like you!"

"…"

"Like you as in I would love more than anything to make sure you can't walk for a few days," he hinted.

"…"

Kaiba looked like he was about ready to yank his hair out. "You can't be that naïve."

"…oh. _Oh_!" Joey gasped, placing his hands over his mouth. But he wasn't allowed the time to process this little bit of information. Kaiba had grabbed his hand and was pulling him off the bench. "Wait! Where are we goin'?"

"I have a few things to settle with your friends."

Joey paled.

* * *

><p>Yugi flinched when he saw Kaiba glaring from the doorway of the Game Shop. He looked murderous, the intent to kill evident in his eyes. And when he saw Joey shaking like a leaf behind him, he figured that whatever reason Kaiba came here for couldn't be good.<p>

"Hi, Kaiba," Yugi started, trying to be pleasant. "Can I help you?"

"Where's Devlin?" the brunet ground out.

Duke's head popped up, as well as Tristan's. "I'm over…here?" Duke's voice trailed off when the glare turned toward him.

Kaiba strolled up to Duke, Joey cautiously following behind him. "You are going to stop insulting Joey. Or there _will _be consequences."

"Insulting Joey?" he echoed. "You mean the dog stuff?"

"Yes."

"You do it."

"I have a reason for doing it. You don't."

_Please don't say it_, Joey thought. He was going to freak out completely is the brunet did.

"And what reason is that?" Duke responded.

"He is mine."

_I can't believe he actually said it!_ Joey felt like he was going to faint.

Yugi's eyes widened as he looked over at Joey.

Duke, however, began laughing. "Yours? In what way? Like a servant? Because I already beat you to the punch. You can always borrow that dog suit, though."

Joey cringed, fully expecting Kaiba to blow up. But to his surprise, he didn't.

In fact, Kaiba just…smirked. "I'm warning you, Devlin. If I find out that you've done _anything_ negative toward Joey again, you will find yourself without a company."

"Are you threatening me?"

"Not yet," Kaiba replied before punching Duke in the face. "Now I'm threatening you. Leave Joey alone. He's mine."

Everyone stared at Duke's still form. Kaiba had knocked the guy out cold.

"Kaiba, what—" Joey began, but he was cut off when Kaiba threw him over his shoulder.

"We're going," said the brunet as he swiftly made his way to the door. "You won't be seeing Joey this weekend, Yugi. He'll be at my place—most likely my bedroom—for the duration of it."

"Wait! Bedroom!" Joey shrieked as he began to flail. Would the suspense never cease?

* * *

><p><strong>End Chapter<strong>


	19. Angst

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The nineteenth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…ANGST!<p>

Just…don't ask where this came from.

* * *

><p><strong>Angst (Rated M)<strong>

Bakura was tired. He was tired of Kaiba and Joey always being at each other's throats, screaming and bickering until either a teacher shut them up or one left out of anger.

And this constant rivalry was starting to piss him off. Not to mention giving an excruciating headache. Perhaps he should…intervene and give them something to _really_ complain about.

Bakura grinned. He liked the idea of that.

It was just a matter of when.

* * *

><p>"Asshole," Joey mumbled to himself when he entered the restroom.<p>

"Don't you walk away from me," snapped Kaiba.

"What the hell? Ya followed me into the bathroom?" the blond shouted.

"I'm not done with you yet!"

"Can I at least take a piss first?"

"Well, excuse me. I didn't know you were housetrained."

"If ya don't cut it out, I'll pee on your—"

"ENOUGH!"

Both Kaiba and Joey jumped at the sound of the intruding voice. Turning around, they spotted Bakura standing in the doorway of the bathroom.

"Oh, come on!" Joey groaned. "Can't a guy pee in peace?"

"I have had it with you two squabbling like a pair of women," Bakura seethed. "So if you're going to act as such, you may as well be as such."

_FLASH!_

* * *

><p>Joey slowly sat up on the bathroom floor, placing a hand to his throbbing head. "What just—" He immediately stopped talking when a voice that was quite unlike his own came out of his mouth. Looking down at himself, he yelped and jumped to his feet.<p>

Kaiba shot up into a sitting position when he heard the scream coming from next to him. But in the process of shooting up so quickly, something on his person came bouncing back down. Glancing at his chest, he saw the bulge of two fairly large somethings pushing against his shirt.

"What the fuck is goin' on?" Joey screamed as he examined himself in the mirror. A female version of himself stared back at him.

Kaiba slowly stood to his feet and looked in the mirror as well. "Holy shit."

"Eek!" Joey screeched, spinning around. "Kaiba?"

"Mutt?"

"What the hell just happened? Why am I a girl? Why are you a girl?" Joey ranted fervently. He pulled in his now lengthy strands. "And pull your pants up!"

Kaiba looked down at himself, noticing the pants pooling at his feet. Apparently, his new girlish figure was…slim.

While Kaiba fought to make himself look a little more decent, Joey couldn't help but take in his enemies appearance. Even as a woman, Kaiba was better off. His boobs were huge. Unlike his, which were more the size of apples than anything else.

"What're we gonna do, Kaiba? I can't go out lookin' like this! What'll people say?"

"Mutt, I doubt anyone will recognize us like this," Kaiba stated. "This is Bakura's doing. We need to find him."

"Like this?" Joey screeched, jumping up and down in anguish. This only made his pants fall t the floor.

Kaiba watched Joey scramble to dress himself until an idea struck him. "Do you know any girls?"

* * *

><p>Tea didn't know how long she stood outside the bathroom, bags filled with clothes. Joey's texts had seemed…frantic to say the least. But why he'd wanted her to bring them here was beyond her.<p>

Suddenly, a woman burst from the bathroom and snatched the bags out of her hands. "Hey!"

"Thanks, Tea!" said the mysterious woman before disappearing back into the bathroom.

Tea paused. If she didn't know any better, she'd have said the woman had almost sounded like Joey, except with a much higher pitch to the voice. Steeling herself, she marched into the bathroom.

"How the fuck do girls where these damn things?"

"…Joey?" started Tea. "Is that you?"

Joey's head shot up, the bra he'd been fumbling with entangled in his hands. "Bakura turned me and Kaiba into women. Help."

"You and Kaiba…what?" Tea looked to her left, only to see another woman foraging through one of the other bags.

Kaiba turned to look at her, a glare on his face. "I'm going to kill Bakura when I figure out how to get dressed."

"Ya gotta make sure he turns us back first," Joey wailed. "I can't live like this! I can't even put on a bra!"

"It's simple," Kaiba snapped. "You just put these blobs in the cup-like things and…well, fuck."

"I think I broke mine."

"How the hell do women deal with these things? They fucking get in the way of everything!" Kaiba roared.

Tea took a deep breath and sighed. This was going to take a while.

* * *

><p>"Stop playing with it," Tea scolded as they walked down the street and headed for the Game Shop.<p>

"I can't help it. It's digging into my skin," growled Kaiba as he fiddled with the bra strap underneath his shirt.

Tea slapped his hands away. "That was the biggest bra I brought. You're just going to have to bear with it until we get you guys…fixed. You've just got _really _big boobs."

She looked over at Joey, who seemed to be walking in a daze. Apparently, the shock hadn't worn off yet.

"We're almost there guys," she said. Then she spotted Tristan and Duke. Great.

"Hey, Tea," began Tristan. "Who're your hot lady friends?"

Duke eyed Joey up and down. "Hey, hot stuff," he said, walking by Joey, but not before he lightly patted his ass.

_This_ seemed to wake Joey from his daze.

"What the hell do ya think you're doin'?" Joey roared as he rounded on Duke.

_POW!_

"Keep your grubby hands to yourself, ya fuckin' pervert!" seethed Joey after he punched him.

Tristan cackled a bit before he turned…and smacked into something soft and warm. He froze when he realized he'd just walked into the chest of the other girl. "Heh, sorry about that."

Kaiba clenched his fists at his sides, a glare on his face. "Run."

Tristan blinked. "Huh?"

"Run…before I kill you. Run."

He did.

* * *

><p>Tea was so happy when they got to the Game Shop. And she was quite relieved to see Bakura there as well.<p>

"You!" Kaiba snarled, pointing a finger at Bakura. "I'm going to ki—"

_Crash!_

"Fucking boobs!" Kaiba roared after his boobs knocked down a card display rack. "Bakura, I'm going to kill you if you don't change us back!"

Bakura stood there in silence for a few moments. "I'm afraid that's impossible."

"Huh? What do ya mean?" Joey stared, nearly leaping over the counter to get to him.

"I can't change you back. But the magic will wear off in about a month."

"What?" Joey screeched, pulling on his hair in angst. "We gotta stay like this?"

"I'm joking," said Bakura as he rolled his eyes. "It wears off in a week."

"A week is still too long," said Kaiba, gritting his teeth.

Bakura turned his attention to him. "You're pretty hot as a woman. Blondie too. I wouldn't mind having a foursome involving the three of us and Ryou."

"Why is everyone bein' a pervert today?"

"A FOURSOME?" announced Ryou as he came into the Game Shop.

Bakura paled. "Ryou?"

"I want you to change them back this minute. Then we're going to have a long talk."

"But Ryou—"

"Don't test me."

"Fine." Bakura turned to Kaiba and Joey. "One of you has to pick who is changing back to normal."

"Huh?" responded Joey.

"I can only change one of you back. The other one has to stay a woman," said Bakura.

"The mutt stays as a woman. Change me back," Kaiba deadpanned.

"What? No! Change me back! Change me back!" Joey began to panic.

"You two are so gullible. I can change both of you back," Bakura mumbled.

Kaiba and Joey sighed in relief.

"Tomorrow," Bakura continued.

"WHAT?" they both roared.

"That was a lot of magic I expended today. I need to…recharge."

"I really am going to kill you," Kaiba ground out. "So you'd better start running."

Bakura bolted. That look meant he was serious, so he burst from the Game Shop, Kaiba right on his heels.

"Damn these boobs!" Kaiba panted as he tried desperately to keep up with Bakura.

"Wait, Kaiba! Ya can't kill him!" Joey shouted after them. "We need him to change us back! Kaiba!"

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	20. Drama

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The twentieth genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…DRAMA!<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Drama (Rated M)<strong>

"Seto? Do ya think ya can go to the store for me and get somethin'?" Joey asked hesitantly. He was a little unsure of his request.

Seto looked up from his laptop for a few seconds before shutting it. "Sure. What do you need?"

"Um…I need ya to go to the grocery story for—"

"What?" Seto interrupted, eyes widening. He hated the grocery store!

"I need ya to go to the grocery store."

"…by myself?"

"Yeah, by yourself!" snapped Joey as he quickly lost his patience. "I need ya to get me some vegetable shortening for my new shortbread pan."

"…"

"It should be in the baking section thingy."

"…"

"Do I need to google it?"

"…no. I got it."

"Ya sure?"

"Yes," replied Seto, but he paused. "Um, what does it look like?"

"It comes in a can, tub thing."

"Okay."

"Ya got it? Cuz ya can take a picture of it online with your phone."

"I've got it, all right? I know what I'm doing."

* * *

><p>He had no idea what he was doing. As soon as Seto entered the grocery store, he stared blankly at the aisles, uncertain of his next move.<p>

What had Joey said? Vegetable something? And it was in…

"The bacon section," Seto mumbled aloud.

He walked by each aisle, reading the signs as he went, but he could not find the bacon section. Perhaps he should ask someone.

"You," Seto demanded immediately. The worker shrieked and turned. "Take me to the bacon section."

"Okay?" the worker hesitantly replied. He quickly led the brunet over to the bacon and stood there as he seemed to glare at the harmless meat.

"This can't be right," Seto muttered. Why would a vegetable something be in a bacon section? "I'm looking for a vegetable something."

"…a vegetable…something? Could you be more specific?"

"My boyfriend said it would be in the bacon section, but I believe he's wrong."

"Are you sure he didn't say _baking_ section?" the worker asked, hoping the brunet wouldn't snap at him.

Seto paused. That _did_ make a lot more sense. "Take me there."

The worker sped off to another aisle, Seto hot on his heels, before he stopped. "Here we are," he said.

Seto stared at the various products, his eyes panning each item as they looked for the word _vegetable_.

"There," said the brunet, his hand reaching out to grab an item.

"Are you sure that's what your boyfriend wants?" asked the worker.

"Of course I am. Do you think I'm an idiot?"

* * *

><p>"What the hell is that?" Joey asked.<p>

"It's what you wanted," replied Seto.

"This is vegetable oil. I said I needed vegetable _shortening_," the blond emphasized.

"Isn't it just the same thing, just in liquid form?"

"It is not the same thing! I told ya it was in a can, tub thingy, not a bottle! This is a bottle!"

"…I suppose this means you're sending me back?"

"If ya wanna get laid, yeah."

* * *

><p>"Somebody help me!" Seto roared once he returned to the grocery store. Everyone stopped what they were doing to look at him. "I need vegetable shortening!"<p>

"And you had to scream at everyone because?" started a woman near him.

Seto rounded on her. "I already fucked this up once! If I don't come home with vegetable shortening, I don't get laid! And if I don't get laid, I will be sexually frustrated! And if I'm sexually frustrated, I will take it out on someone!"

"You're gonna rape people? Did you hear that? He's gonna rape people!" cried a customer.

"What? No! That's not what I meant!" shouted the brunet.

"Someone call security!"

"Rapist! Rapist on the loose!"

* * *

><p>"So," started the police officer. "You claim to be Seto Kaiba?"<p>

"I am Seto Kaiba," the brunet deadpanned.

"Sure you are," the second officer replied skeptically.

"You have my identification. My face is plastered nearly everywhere. Why don't you believe me?"

"We get all kinds of lookalikes in here. But we don't usually get one saying he's gonna rape people."

"You have thoughts like that often, boy?"

Seto inhaled deeply to calm himself. "I was misunderstood. And I am the _real_ Seto Kaiba."

"That's what they all say."

"Don't I get a phone call?"

"Not today."

"You can't do this. You can't hold me here."

"Yes we can."

"With what evidence? I haven't committed a crime," insisted Seto.

"Well, we do have several witnesses who have come forward claiming you were going to rape people," said one of the officers.

"I was misunderstood."

"And a worker also claimed you harassed him earlier today."

"I did not. I requested his assistance with something."

"Did you now?" replied the other officer. "And just what were you wanting him to assist you with? Some dirty little thing, I expect."

"No!"

"Let's lock you up for the night. That'll loosen your tongue."

"No! Wait! I demand my phone call!"

* * *

><p>Mokuba and Joey paused in front of the police station. It was now or never. They pushed open the doors to the building and stepped inside.<p>

"Can someone help me, please?" Mokuba started.

An officer approached him casually. "Yes?"

Suddenly, Mokuba's face took on the infamous Kaiba glare. "You have my brother, Seto Kaiba, in custody. And I demand he be released this instant."

The officer's eyes widened. "You mean he's the real deal?"

"Of course he is! And was I notified about my brother randomly being arrested by you guys? No! Did I get a phone call from him, one that he's guaranteed to have? No! And you wanna know how I found out he was here? The news!"

The officer gulped.

"Someone filmed the grocery store altercation from their cell phone and sold it to the media! There are headlines going around that say, _Seto Kaiba: Domino's Secret Rapist_ and _The Great Seto Kaiba's Grocery Meltdown_!" Mokuba continued to scream.

"We thought—"

"I don't care what you thought! Take me to my brother! Now!"

"Yeah. Sure. This way."

Joey followed behind Mokuba at a distance. Who knew the kid could be so scary?

"Here he is," muttered the officer as he unlocked the cell. "Sorry."

"Seto?" Mokuba called out quietly at the still form sitting on the cot.

"Mokuba? Joey? You're here!" the brunet shouted as he lunged at them. "Do you have any idea what I've been through?"

"Set—"

"They didn't give me a phone call, they locked me in this cell, and I had to share it with a homeless man who smelled like a rotting carcass. There's only one toilet, which that vile man _missed_ when using! How does someone miss like that?"

"Seto—"

"And all this because of some stupid…_thing _from the grocery store!" seethed the brunet. "At least things can't get any worse."

Both Joey and Mokuba shut their mouths. Boy, was the brunet in for a surprise.

* * *

><p>"Mr. Kaiba! Are you really Domino's secret rapist?"<p>

"How many people have you raped so far?"

"Was your grocery meltdown due to drugs?"

Seto pinched the bridge of his nose, resisting the urge to start using the reporters' microphones as nunchucks and going all martial arts on the camera crews. That wouldn't do for his reputation. Not that it seemed he had one anymore.

"I hate grocery stores," he mumbled.

"How does it feel to be banned from the city's grocery stores?"

"Are you aware of the restraining order against you from one of the employees you sexually harassed?"

"I FUCKING HATE YOU MEDIA PEOPLE! DON'T YOU EVER GET THE FACTS?"

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


	21. Romance

Disclaimer – I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

*Rated T for Teen (Unless Otherwise Noted)

* * *

><p>Author's Note – The twenty-first and FINAL genre challenge Reizbar-Ookami has given me is…ROMANCE!<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Romance (Rated M)<strong>

"Help me," Seto deadpanned to his secretary.

Aimi raised her head and stared at her boss, noticing the strained expression on his face. It seemed as if he was trying to hold himself together. "What do you need help with?"

"What is the proper first year anniversary gift?"

"The proper…you mean traditional?"

"Yes."

"Paper."

Seto just stared at her. "Excuse me?"

"Paper is the traditional gift for a first year wedding anniversary," she replied calmly. Why couldn't today be her day off?

"Paper," her boss repeated. "Paper?"

"Yes. Paper," she replied. _Three…two…one—_

"WHAT THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO DO WITH PAPER?" Seto roared.

Aimi took a deep breath. "Why me?" she mumbled. "Mr. Kaiba, would it be helpful if I offered some ideas?"

The brunet's anxious yet livid expression seemed to dwindle as he pondered that suggestion. "I suppose. What did you have in mind?"

"You could do a genealogy gift…or not? What about a family tree?"

"Not enough family."

"A wedding scrapbook?"

"I don't have the patience."

"Money?"

"Won't take it."

"…origami money?"

"…what the hell is that?"

"You take dollar bills and fold them up like origami," Aimi replied with a smile.

"No."

"Gift certificate?"

"He won't even take money?"

"Gift card?"

"Are you really that obtuse?"

Aimi groaned. "Then what about a bottle of wine with a cute little card attached to it?"

"He doesn't drink alcohol."

"Then pick something from the anniversary flower gift list! Or the modern anniversary gift list!" she snapped.

"…there are different lists?"

"Yes!"

"Why didn't you say so before?"

"AUGH!"

Seto flinched. "What's on the flower list?"

"For first year anniversary?" she replied as she tried to calm herself. "Carnations."

"No. He doesn't like those. What about the modern list?"

"Clocks."

"Clocks?"

"Yes. Clocks."

"…you're not very helpful with this sort of thing."

"Fine! Go wear a paper thong for all I care! Just leave me out of it!" Aimi screamed before storming off.

As Seto watched her go, he said, "It must be her time of the month."

* * *

><p>"Can I open them now?" Joey asked as Seto led him—stumbling—to their bedroom.<p>

"Not until I shut the door."

"Huh? Why?"

"You'll see," Seto answered. "All right. Open them."

When Joey opened his eyes, he gasped.

"Happy Anniversary."

"_This_ is my anniversary gift?"

The smirk Seto was about to let grace his features faltered. "Is there something wrong with it?"

"Seto…it's almost a life-size version of you…naked…outta origami paper."

"But—wait. What do you mean almost?"

"Your dick ain't that big."

"Excuse me!"

"I'm not bashin' on your size. It's perfectly fine. But this…are ya tryin' to compensate for somethin' or what?"

"I'm not trying to compensate for anything."

"Then why the bigger d—"

"Just drop it," Seto cut in, losing his patience. "There's more."

"Ya got a naked statue, too?"

"No."

"But ya want one, don't ya?"

"Of you, maybe. But that's not the point," Seto said hurriedly. "Each folded piece of paper has a…request."

Joey smiled. "Ya mean I can cash in these little requests and ya do stuff for me?"

"It's more the other way around."

"What?" Joey started, looking offended. "How is that _for_ me?"

"Because you're on the receiving end."

"…oh. Oh!" Joey exclaimed in realization.

"Yes, they're _those_ kinds of requests."

The blond headed over origami Seto and pulled off one of the pieces. "_Now_ it's the right size."

"Joey," Seto warned, but the blond just laughed it off.

"I like the idea, Seto, but it's not very romantic."

"Then we'll light a fucking a candle!" the brunet snapped. "This whole anniversary thing wasn't easy! I mean…paper?"

"Ya were goin' for traditional?"

"…yes."

"Then I love it and it is romantic," Joey said sweetly before he sauntered toward the bed. "Now let's try one of these babies out."

* * *

><p><strong>End<strong>


End file.
